Free checklist

Before you wire: the vendor checklist

Eight checks to run before money leaves your account. Nothing here needs an account or a tool — these are the checks a person makes. The records check is the one we run for you, in about twelve seconds.

1. 01Call them on a number you found yourselfUse the number on their website or on the first invoice you ever got from them. Never the number in the email asking for the money.
2. 02Treat any change in bank details as fraud until a voice callNew account, new bank, new country, “our usual account is frozen” — all of it stops until a person you already know confirms it out loud.
3. 03Ask for a business registration numberThen check it yourself against the public registry in their country. A real supplier hands it over without a fuss.
4. 04Look at how old the web address isA three-week-old web address on a supplier who claims twenty years in business is the tell.
5. 05Read the sending address character by characterOne swapped letter, one extra hyphen, .co instead of .com. That single character is the whole scam.
6. 06On a first payment, split it or use a method with recoursePart now, the rest on shipping documents. A card or a letter of credit gives you somewhere to go if it goes wrong. A wire does not.
7. 07If their email may be compromised, change the channelRestart the conversation on a channel they did not choose — a phone call, a different address you already had on file.
8. 08Save what you sawScreenshot the invoice, the sending address, and the bank details before you pay. It is the only record you will have afterwards.

This checklist is general guidance, not legal or financial advice. Confirm wire instructions by phone before sending funds.