Email & Payroll Diversion (BEC) Security

Security platforms that stop the single most common payroll fraud in 2026: someone emailing HR pretending to be an employee and asking to change direct deposit details.

Editor's Pick

Sublime Security

Serious BEC defense a small team can actually turn on: free for 100 mailboxes, no MX change

Genuinely free for your first 100 mailboxes, no credit card and no MX change. Above that it's a paid, quote-based subscription priced per mailbox, contact the vendor for current pricing. A free, open-source self-hosted version of the platform is available on GitHub for teams that want to run and extend it themselves.8.4/10

Abnormal AI

Stops the 'update my direct deposit' email before payroll ever sees it

Contact the vendor for current pricing — Abnormal is premium, quote-only email security with no free tier, priced per mailbox on employee count plus paid onboarding (professional services commonly $5k-$25k+). Reported per-mailbox rates work out to a few dollars a month, so a 200-mailbox company should budget low five figures a year before services.8.0/10

IRONSCALES

Per-seat BEC and account-takeover protection priced for SMBs and the MSPs that serve them

Per-user monthly subscription across three tiers (Protect, Email Protect, Complete Protect). IRONSCALES doesn't publish seat prices on its own site, but third-party listings consistently put them around $3.89, $5.49-5.99, and $7.29 per user per month respectively, confirm your quote directly. Free trial, no free tier. An MSP partner program means your IT provider can often add it for you.7.7/10

Check Point Harmony Email & Collaboration

Enterprise-grade inbox security (the tool formerly called Avanan), sold to SMBs through the channel

Quote-based and sold largely through MSPs and resellers rather than self-serve, contact the vendor or a partner for current pricing. There's no public per-seat number; expect per-mailbox annual pricing that lands competitively with the dedicated tools once a partner packages it. Free trials and demos are available.7.3/10

Microsoft Defender for Office 365

The BEC baseline you may already be paying for inside Microsoft 365

Bundled into Microsoft 365 Business Premium ($22/user/mo), so many SMBs already own Plan 1. Standalone it's about $2/user/mo for Plan 1 and $5/user/mo for Plan 2 (which adds attack-simulation training plus automated investigation and response), billed annually. The real question isn't the price, it's whether you've turned on the anti-phishing and impersonation policies you already have.7.0/10