Scammers often target businesses and independent professionals with messages designed to obtain sensitive information or redirect payments. This article outlines the most common scam types, key red flags, and how to verify messages safely.
Recognizing common scams
Phishing (or vishing, smishing) - Scammers attempt to trick the victim into disclosing sensitive information, like personally identifiable information or account passwords. This happens over the phone, via email, or through text message.
Tech Support - Scammers pose as tech support to get victims to pay bogus invoices or grant remote access to their devices—compromising the victim’s personal information and finances.
Payment forwarding - A scammer will insert themselves into a legitimate business transaction, usually using stolen credentials or falsified information, to have the victim send a payment to different bank account or withdraw funds to an unauthorized account.
Employment scams - Posing as a company offering a job, the scammer will demand payment from the would-be employee as part of the hiring or onboarding process, or to receive a fraudulent payment. Once the transaction is complete, the scammer disappears.
Spotting red flags
Close-enough emails with substituted letters or numbers, e.g. "hellob0nsa1.com", a colleague’s name with an “s” where an “a” should be
A no-reply email generated by an invoicing software with a trusted party’s name, forwarded to you by another person, e.g. “name+bunchofnumbers @ gmail.com" forwarding a noreply@hellobonsai.com email
Emails with attachments and no text
Grammatical or spelling errors
A sense of urgency or pressure in the message
Attachments containing requests for personal or financial information
Hovering over links reveal a suspicious or unexpected address
✋ Bonsai and its payment processor Stripe will never ask for your password or full bank details.
Verifying suspicious messages
If a message feels unexpected or off, always confirm it using a trusted contact method.
Do not reply directly to a suspicious message or use the contact details provided in it.
Instead, open a separate, verified channel.
Look up the company’s official support contact information.
Start a new conversation using that verified phone number, website, or email address.
This goes for phone calls as well—scammers often disguise their caller ID as trusted parties, like a bank or cybersecurity provider.
Getting help from Bonsai
Bonsai is here to help support you and protect you from fraud and scams. If you need help verifying a message related to your Bonsai activity, you can get in touch with us using the methods below:
Chat: Reach out through the in-app chat widget.
Email Support: Contact support@hellobonsai.com for review.
Forward suspicious emails: Send questionable emails that appear related to Bonsai to operations@hellobonsai.com so we can investigate.