In the jungle of fraud risks,
 you’re covered– until you’re not 

The jungle is full of risks and threats. Some represent clear and present danger, like the tiger stalking the forest, waiting for an opportunity to pounce on its prey. Others, meanwhile, are less obvious, but no less threatening. Take poison ivy, for example. To the human eye, it looks like any other harmless plant. But get too close, brush against it, or accidentally ingest it, and the effects can be serious.

Businesses navigating today’s fraud landscape face a similar reality. There are the dangers everyone recognizes – the predators hiding in the darkness, or the intruders trying to break into your camp. These are the external fraud threats that companies typically prepare for, often with protections like cyber insurance.

But not every risk is so easy to recognize. Some of the most damaging fraud can come from inside the camp, hidden in day-to-day processes. Internal fraud committed by employees or close partners has become just as costly and disruptive as attacks from outside the organization. Like poison ivy, it doesn’t look dangerous – until the damage is done.

In today’s business environment, fraud risks aren’t just rising – they’re becoming more complex. Rapid technological change, geopolitical and economic volatility, and evolving working habits are just some of the factors reshaping the threat landscape.

As a result, some companies may no longer be sufficiently protected by their existing insurance cover. You may think, for example, that your cyber insurance will protect you from most cases of business fraud. But invariably, cyber insurance alone will not provide the comprehensive cover you need. It might help defend against external attacks but leave you exposed to internal risks, for example. 

Based on 100 years of experience helping companies tackle business fraud, our Business Fraud Insurance solutions are designed to keep pace with evolving threats across the whole landscape. 

Tailored to your organization following a comprehensive fraud risk assessment, our solutions offer protection against a wide range of fraud risks, both internal and external. Whether your business operates as a single entity or in a more complex, multi-entity structure, we deliver customized protection to meet your company’s specific requirements.

Fraud is a serious and growing drain on company finances. In mid-2025, TransUnion, a global financial information and insights company, reported that businesses globally lose on average 7.7% of annual revenue to fraud – around US$534 billion across the surveyed firms.

Meanwhile, case numbers continue to climb. According to research from Alloy, a fraud solutions provider, last year 67% of senior fraud decision makers in US financial services said fraud incidents are still rising. 

Social engineering attacks are accelerating. In this type of fraud, fraudsters manipulate individuals into sharing confidential information or authorizing payments. Data from the Allianz Trade Loss Statistics 2025 report shows a 13% increase in social engineering cases between 2024 and 2025, with a staggering 60% rise in losses.

Fraudsters are harnessing technology to make social engineering attacks more sophisticated. With the help of AI and deepfake tools, for example, they can design scams that are hyper-realistic, and even more highly targeted towards key decision makers and specific individuals within organizations. Because they involve manipulation and exploit human vulnerabilities, social engineering attacks are rarely covered by existing cyber insurance policies. 

However, despite this surge in social engineering attacks, internal fraud – such as theft and embezzlement – still represents the greater risk for many businesses. Between 2024 and 2025, ‘insiders’ – most prominently a company’s own employees – accounted for 60% of all fraud cases reported by Allianz Trade. 

The financial damage is even more pronounced. In 2025, internal cases accounted for 65% of total fraud losses, with external fraud responsible for the remaining 35%.

In the jungle, different threats require different forms of protection. Binoculars might help you spot the tiger moving through the trees, but they won’t protect you from poisonous plants on the ground. When tackling white-collar crime, businesses face a similar challenge: the tools you need to stop one type of danger may not automatically protect you from another.

Cyber insurance protects companies from losses related to cybercrime and data breaches. Cover typically focuses on events like ransomware attacks or major network disruption, and the subsequent costs of handling the fallout. Essentially, cyber insurance covers mostly technology-driven risks. 

In contrast, our Business Fraud Insurance focuses on financial losses caused by the deliberately fraudulent activities of individuals, as well as manipulation. It deals with issues of trust – both between and within businesses – with cover focused on losses caused by internal fraud, extending to other financial crimes that exploit human vulnerabilities. While technology is often used as means to exploit these vulnerabilities, it’s not a specific prerequisite for a Business Fraud Insurance claim.   

It’s easy to understand the confusion between these two types of insurance. Today, business communication is highly digitized, and many fraudsters attack companies via email or other digital channels. The interconnectedness of these two spaces – the technological and the human – has never been greater. 

However, even when digital communication is involved, losses from social engineering attacks usually stem from individuals being manipulated and misled, and not because of a failure of the IT system itself. That’s why companies need Business Fraud Insurance in addition to cyber insurance: the two are complementary, and having one without the other could leave critical risks uncovered.      

For businesses, you need clarity on where your cyber insurance ends and where your Business Fraud Insurance begins. Only then can you be sure that your protection against fraud is optimized no matter where an attack comes from, or what form it takes.

By keeping one eye on external attacks while remaining aware of internal threats, our Business Fraud Insurance complements your cyber insurance, offering specialized and comprehensive protection against the financial consequences of fraud. 

Our solutions provide coverage for companies of all sizes for the direct financial losses you sustain from wilful unlawful acts by employees, or specific types of third-party fraud. Essentially, we protect you against the financial impact of fraud both from inside and outside your business.

On the external fraud side, our Business Fraud Insurance protects you against targeted attacks including CEO fraud, fake buyer fraud, and payment diversion, for example. Our solutions are built to keep pace with the evolving tools and techniques fraudsters are using to carry out these external scams, including AI, deepfake technologies, and voice imitation. 

On the internal fraud side, Business Fraud Insurance covers you against a range of unlawful acts, including the theft of money or physical assets, embezzlement, sabotage or property damage, and the unauthorized disclosure of trade secrets. 

The depth and flexibility of our solutions is what sets Allianz Trade apart. Our Business Fraud Insurance is tailored to your company’s size and needs, giving you comprehensive protection against both internal and external fraud risks as they evolve. 

Our dedicated fraud experts work with you to help implement our solution easily. When fraud does occur, our specialized claims team – consisting of legal experts in business fraud and other economic crimes – handles your claim with care and competence, supporting you in managing the impact of a loss event.

In the jungle, focusing only on the external threats is a dangerous strategy. Often, it’s the hidden threats – the ones already inside your camp or hidden in the undergrowth – that cause the most damage. 

It’s the same with fraud risks. While cyber insurance is essential for all companies operating today, often it doesn’t provide comprehensive cover against losses from social engineering attacks, nor does it protect you against internal fraud and losses caused by human deception, manipulation, and breaches of trust from within your organization. 

With our Business Fraud Insurance, you’re protected from internal and external fraud attacks that can’t always be anticipated or prevented. With a solution that’s tailored to your specific requirements, and the ongoing support of our fraud experts, you’ll be fully prepared to face today’s jungle of fraud risks, no matter where the next threat comes from.