How to research a new customer or vendor before you commit

Check that the name, email domain, phone number and address point to the same person or business. A free webmail address on a large corporate order, a phone number from a different region than the address, or a shipping address far from the billing address is worth a second look. On its own, none of these proves fraud.

Real businesses usually leave consistent public traces: a website, listings and reviews that show the same contact details. Open the original sources in a report and confirm that the same email, phone or address appears there, rather than relying on a summary.

For a new supplier, check that the website domain matches the email domain and that the business has existed for longer than a few weeks. For a new customer, a complete lack of public footprint isn’t proof of anything, but it means you should rely more on other checks.

Rush shipping on expensive items to an address you’ve never shipped to. Several orders or payment attempts in a short time with different cards. A request to change the shipping address after the order is placed. A buyer who insists on an unusual payment method or wants to pay more than the invoice. A supplier who suddenly sends new bank details.

Any one of these can have an innocent explanation. Two or three together are a reason to pause and confirm before you ship or pay.

For changed bank details or rushed payment requests, call the business on a number you found yourself, not one in the email. The FBI warns that business email compromise often relies on convincing, urgent requests to change payment instructions.

Write down what you checked, what matched and what didn’t, and how you confirmed. If an order later turns into a dispute or chargeback, a dated note plus your shipping records and messages makes your case much stronger.