How Businesses Can Help Customers Recognize Fake Payment Requests

When customers don’t know who should collect their money, an unexpected payment request can seem legitimate. Your business can help customers recognize fake payment requests and avoid payment fraud through clear instructions about payment timing and approved channels. Give customers a reliable way to check requests before they send money.

Payment Confusion Creates an Opening for Scammers

According to the Association for Financial Professionals, 76% of organizations reported attempted or completed payment fraud in 2025. The survey collected responses from 465 corporate professionals, and 58% of organizations reported check fraud, making it the most frequently affected payment method.

An invoice that names an unfamiliar recipient leaves customers to decide whether the business changed its arrangements or someone intercepted the transaction. Similar uncertainty arises when a request arrives before the expected due date. Review gaps in your existing process before assuming a different payment method will resolve the problem.

Common Payment Scenarios That Confuse Customers

A legitimate collection handoff and an altered invoice call for different customer guidance. The first requires an explanation of the agreement, while the second needs attention to the destination behind a familiar document.

Dealer-to-Provider Payment Handoffs

Some agreements require customers to pay a dealer initially and a separate provider afterward. For example, a customer might pay at signing to cover the first month and an administrative fee, plus applicable tax and any required deposit. The next payment, usually due 30 days after delivery, would go to the provider.

If your business uses this arrangement, explain the handoff before billing changes. Identify the company collecting future payments and specify its approved payment channels so customers have a reference for checking an unfamiliar recipient.

Fraudulent QR Codes on Invoices

An altered invoice could contain a QR code that redirects to a convincing fake page. In this attack, called quishing, the code triggers a scan and opens a pretend website that may steal payment details or prompt a malware download. 

Your customer notices can highlight these warning signs:

• Overlapping stickers: A second code covers the original, sometimes with peeling edges.
• Urgent instructions: The notice pressures the recipient to scan immediately.
• Inconsistent appearance: Poor print quality or unfamiliar branding warrants closer inspection.
• Unfamiliar destinations: The URL preview contains a misspelling or unexpected domain.

Clear Payment Procedures Help Reduce Customer Risk

A customer who usually receives invoices by mail might receive an unexpected text message requesting payment through a new app. To address this type of payment fraud, make unannounced channel changes a reason to pause the transaction until your business confirms the change.

Keep a list of accepted methods on a permanent customer information page. Avoid gift cards and cryptocurrency for routine collections, and assess traceability and recovery options before offering wire payments. 

During provider selection, ask how the service controls access to accounts and monitors suspicious transactions. Restrict checkout editing permissions to authorized employees and require approval before anyone changes a payment destination.

The Federal Reserve’s toolkit recommends employee training and process controls to help prevent scams, along with technology to detect suspicious invoices and payments. Its guidelines cover people and technical safeguards, so written instructions should form part of a broader operating process.

Assign an owner to maintain collection procedures and record when changes take effect. Customer service staff should also know where to report suspicious messages, with a designated security contact responsible for reviewing those reports. Your banking partner can explain its customer education resources and procedures for suspected scam transactions.

Steps Customers Can Take to Verify Payment Requests

Give clients these steps to follow if they sense suspicious payment requests. Your support team should use the same process when responding to inquiries.

Customers can take these steps to verify payment requests:

• Find an independent contact number: Ask customers to look up the company’s number on its official website or check an existing contract. They should avoid using the information supplied in any unexpected message.
• Confirm the request with support: Your staff should check the customer’s account and confirm whether your business issued the request before any payment happens.
• Open the official payment page: Publish the exact domains for your checkout and any authorized payment provider. Instruct customers to type the known address manually without using a message link or invoice code.

Help Your Clients Recognize Payment Fraud

Make a paused payment a reason for your team to investigate, without pressuring the client to proceed. Back that policy with staff who can resolve discrepancies before money changes hands. The next suspicious request should meet a customer who feels confident stopping and a business prepared to respond.