Business Email Research Articles

Human Firewall Simulator for Enhancing Security Awareness against Business Email Compromise

Chief executive officers (CEOs) can turn out to be the weakest link to an organization’s security and attackers know that if they successfully exploit or impersonate someone who has a high level of access like CEOs or chief finance officers (CFOs), they instantly gain great advantage. The problem comes when attacker manages to take control of email accounts of the CEOs and CFOs and sends an email to another staff in the organization, he/she is likely to take it seriously, act accordingly and quickly as possible, and may be wire cash to an account directed by the “CEO/CFO,” and/or get away with private or sensitive corporate information. Because of the nature of these attack methods, detection and protection are very difficult since the attackers take advantage of the human weakness which is the weakest link. The main aim of this study is to provide a solution to protect every surface of the organization. By developing a human firewall, working with the already existing technical solutions offers the solution to remaining problem of human weakness. This research developed a simulator to train the users with the latest trends the attackers are using making them do it right (flagging, reporting, not clicking suspicions links) and making email security part of their responsibility. This makes employee become human firewall. The results from the simulator are displayed in charts as number of employees who passed the test, number of employees who will click on the malicious links, number of employees who will download the dangerous attachments, number of employees who will reply to phishing emails, average awareness of the organization, and how individual employees performed. While organizations have made progress over the years, security is a never-ending process that requires improvement day by day. Since no one in the organization’s structure is immune including the top most in the cadre (i.e., CEO), complexity in understanding and awareness creation is more wanting than before. Integrating human firewall into existing security measures as the last line of defense in email communication against business email compromise frauds offers this solution because it has preventive as well as reactive measures both geared toward maximizing email security. A simulation of the attacks to analyze the user involvement to breaching the security followed by an evaluation simulation after integrating human firewall to the organization’s email security shows success level. The results from the test show the different success levels, that is, results from pre-assessment definitely show low success level since staff/employees have not been made aware/trained to profile or flag compared to when the employees/staff have gone through the training/awareness. Post-assessment indicates high success level because actions from employees turned into human firewall know how to take proper action, for example, flagging, not clicking malicious links. The organization should update its policies to accommodate and reinforce rules on the employees to ensure that the tool is used regularly and actions taken on user deemed a threat to the organizational email security.

The Essentials of Writing Business Emails

The present article addresses the relevance of business emails to a technology-driven world. With staggering numbers of professional emails, sent worldwide on a daily basis, this medium of communication remains a commonly used method in the workplace. Though fast and effective, business emails require a thorough training, with specific rules to be observed. Just as importantly, the guidelines for writing professional emails also refer to business email etiquette

Enhancing Business Email Writing Ability through the Integration of Genre-based Approach and Data-driven Learning

Email functions as a pivotal tool in facilitating today’s business correspondence. Similar to other written genres, email incorporates distinct conventions and linguistic patterns that are recognized within a particular community. Deviating from the established conventions and recurring patterns can pose challenges for individuals engaging in communication within this genre. This study, which utilized a mixed methods research design, formulated a teaching approach that synergized genre-based approach (GBA) with data-driven learning (DDL) to facilitate business email writing instruction, while its effectiveness in enhancing students’ aptitude for written communication was investigated. The participants comprised 24 EFL university students with elementary (n=12) and intermediate (n=12) English proficiency levels from diverse academic disciplines. They underwent a 10-hour instructional course designed to augment their business email writing competence. Data were collected through pre-test and post-test assessments, supplemented by semi-structured interviews. The findings indicated a statistically significant improvement in participants’ business email writing ability subsequent to the intervention. Qualitatively, students’ post-intervention emails exhibited well-organized structure, comprehensive content, and contextual appropriateness, underpinned by practical, professional, and linguistically accurate language use. Furthermore, students expressed satisfaction with the pedagogical approach as it effectively prepared them for real-world business email communication.

EXPLORING THE POWER OF GENERATIVE AI: ENHANCING BUSINESS EMAIL WRITING SKILLS FOR L2 LEARNERS

L2 learners at higher education often face difficulties in writing business emails in English, which hinder effective workplace communication and academic success. Therefore, higher education institutions should educate their learners about business email literacy. This study analysed how thirty-one business degree Malay students at a public university in Malaysia utilized generative AI tools for composing business emails. These participants presented their reflection investigation on the application of generative AI in business email writing for their group class assignment for English for Business Communication. This study's research approach included a qualitative document analysis on PowerPoint presentation slides of the participants, and thematic analysis was used to analyse the data. The findings reveal three themes emerged from the study; Theme 1: Preferred generative AI, Theme 2: Optimising generative AI prompts for business email writing, and Theme 3: Ethical usage of AI. Theme 1 has three sub-themes; user friendliness, relevant business contexts and quality generated texts. The results showed that all groups had different AI tools due to their personal choices. Theme 2 has two sub-themes; prompts for external email and prompts for internal email. The participants used generative AI tools for idea expansion and paraphrasing. These L2 learners also wrote specific prompts for different types of email. Two emerging sub-themes of Theme 3 are writing assistance and best practices on ethical usage of generative AI. The participants stressed the significance of understanding plagiarism and effectively using generative AI tools. Learners should be educated on intellectual property and ethical AI tool usage. Higher education institutions should integrate these tools into their courses to enhance business email writing skills and prepare students for AI-driven workplaces, fostering ethical and effective usage.

Persuasive Strategies in Email Marketing: An Analysis of Appeal and Influence in Business Communication

This study examines the employment of persuasive strategies in informational emails that market products and/or services, illustrating how these strategies influence target customers and persuade them to make purchases. A corpus of 850 emails, encompassing over a million words, was compiled and analyzed using a mixed-method approach that integrated both quantitative and qualitative measures. The emails were collected between 2020 and 2021. The categorization of persuasive strategies was directed by predefined operational definitions and criteria, informed by Aristotle's model of persuasion. The analysis identified 11 persuasive strategies utilized within the email corpus. Notably, the findings revealed that the offering appeal and the appeal to authority are the most commonly used strategies, whereas the contrasting appeal and romantic expressions are the least employed. These results underscore the importance of persuasive strategies in business communication, especially within informational emails. The insights derived from this study carry significant implications for businesses in crafting compelling marketing messages. Furthermore, the findings contribute to English for Business Purposes courses, particularly in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) contexts, by offering guidance on constructing persuasive business emails.

Making requests at work: An examination of phrase frames in workplace email communication

As a method of business communication, emails play an essential role in establishing relationships and support systems among colleagues, partners, and sponsors to achieve business goals. Research has suggested that nonnative speakers of English and novice writers face challenges when composing professional email requests for business purposes. Previous studies have underscored the importance of phrase frames (p-frames), which are recurring multi-word sequences with a variable slot, to fulfill rhetorical functions in academic discourse. However, little research has explored how p-frames are used for written communications in business workplace contexts. This study investigated five-word p-frames used for rhetorical moves in business email requests. Using 1,148 authentic request emails extracted from the Avocado Research Email Collection corpus, we analyzed the distribution and linguistic characteristics of p-frames across five rhetorical moves. Results showed that p-frames were unevenly distributed across the rhetorical moves in business request emails. Two moves, making the inquiry and closing, showed the highest degree of formulaicity. P-frames were used in a variety of messages to soften demands and express politeness. This study has pedagogical implications for teaching English for business purposes to both L2 learners and novice writers.

Pedagogical Insights and Practical Exercises for Business Email English

Pedagogical Insights and Practical Exercises for Business Email English

ABOUT BUSINESS E-MAIL AS A GENRE OF PROFESSIONAL INTERNET COMMUNICATION IN THE COURSE OF “LANGUAGE OF BUSINESS COMMUNICATION”

The research focuses on exploring lexical-grammatical, syntactic, punctuation features of the text of business e-mail as a genre of professional Internet communication in the course of “Language of business communication”. The tasks are outlined as follows: 1) to reveal the contents of the course of “Language of business communication”; 2) to highlight the importance of the content module on professional Internet communication; 3) to analyze business e-mail as a genre of professional Internet communication. The descriptive method and various types of linguistic analysis are applied. Emphasis is placed on the motivational-practical (speech) component of the course as a defining feature of the “Language of business communication” discipline, which determines the approach to the thematic content of the four content modules. The proposed research highlights the fourth content module, which reveals the peculiarities of Internet business communication and encompass follows themes: “Internet communication: specifics, types, genres”, “Language organization of business Internet communication”. The analyzed content module involves familiarizing students with the concept of Internet style, types of network communication, genres of business Internet communication, types of posts in social networks, and the culture of Internet communication. To improve the practical skills of business electronic correspondence, an educational model (formulated in linguistics) was used, which consists in the synthesis of four interrelated aspects. The first aspect is based on mastering the theoretical foundations of the researched problem: philology students reveal the essence of the concept of an electronic business letter, systematize the basic principles of creating and rules for writing business e-mails. The second aspect is practical. It consists primarily in the formation of skills and abilities to analyze the texts of business letters. For example, the structural-compositional, lexical-grammatical, and punctuation features of an electronic Cover Letter and a Request Letter are considered. The third aspect is research. It involves independent processing of the text of an electronic business letter in accordance with the proposed algorithm. The fourth stage is creative. It provides for the independent creation of an electronic business letter taking into account the specified requirements. The results of the research can be used as materials for practical classes on the language of business communication, Ukrainian language for professional purposes, language culture, etc. Key words: “Language of business communication”, business e-mail, professional Internet communication, etiquette of business correspondence.

Cybercriminal Networks and Operational Dynamics of Business Email Compromise (BEC) Scammers: Insights from the “Black Axe” Confraternity

ABSTRACT I explored the relationship between the “Black Axe” Confraternity and cybercrime, with a particular emphasis on the structural dynamics of the Business Email Compromise (BEC) schemes. I investigated whether a conventional hierarchical system governs the membership and remuneration for BEC roles as perpetrators by interviewing an accused “leader” of the “Black Axe” affiliated cybercriminal incarcerated in a prominent Western nation. I supplemented the analysis of interview data with insights from tapped phone records monitored by a law enforcement entity. I merged Actor-network theory and Social Network theory as analytical frameworks and thematically analyzed data to produce six overarching themes: (1) The fluidity of Structure and Adaptive Roles in BEC, (2) Challenges in Visualizing Criminal Networks, (3) Globalization and Transnational Dimensions, (4) Social and Cultural Influences, (5) Internal Cybersecurity Threats and Money Laundering, and (6) Remuneration and Influences of Cryptocurrency, casting a brighter light on the topic. Unlike traditional organized crime, BEC scammers have adopted a nonhierarchical model that is flexible and fluid. I found no evidence of a rigid hierarchy dictating positions and remuneration for BEC roles. Instead, I observed that cybercriminals involved in BEC activities functioned horizontally, promoting fluidity, maneuverability, collaboration, and specialization across various facets of their illicit pursuits. I also highlighted the cross-border links BEC offenders have with other criminal actors facilitated by Black Axe organizational machinery. My research adds value to the existing body of knowledge, utilizing a unique dataset comprising direct testimonies of a high-profile BEC offender affiliated with the ‘hard–to–access,’ Black Axe gang.

BEC Defender: QR Code-Based Methodology for Prevention of Business Email Compromise (BEC) Attacks.

In an era of ever-evolving and increasingly sophisticated cyber threats, protecting sensitive information from cyberattacks such as business email compromise (BEC) attacks has become a top priority for individuals and enterprises. Existing methods used to counteract the risks linked to BEC attacks frequently prove ineffective because of the continuous development and evolution of these malicious schemes. This research introduces a novel methodology for safeguarding against BEC attacks called the BEC Defender. The methodology implemented in this paper augments the authentication mechanisms within business emails by employing a multi-layered validation process, which includes a MAC address as an identity token, QR code generation, and the integration of timestamps as unique identifiers. The BEC-Defender algorithm was implemented and evaluated in a laboratory environment, exhibiting promising results against BEC attacks by adding an extra layer of authentication.

Gid Crypto: Application for End-to-End Encrypt and Decrypt E-mail and Data

Privacy and security in our digital environment have become essential today. Some data stored on hard disks, in flash memory, or exchanged through our communication channels is sensitive and should be kept confidential. Additionally, documents containing confidential information, such as business algorithms or new application coding, require adequate measures to ensure privacy and security. Therefore, data encryption is crucial in protecting information from being intercepted, misused, or stolen. While encryption tools are available for business e-mails, using these tools often requires subscribing as a member and paying extra fees. Effective tools are not limited to e-mail alone. Still, they can also be applied to any text data that requires a high level of security and complexity to ensure the protection of the data for a duration longer than it needs to be safeguarded. Our research aims to develop a stand-alone application that encrypts data to ensure its confidentiality without additional subscriptions or fees. The application is designed to be user-friendly, with fast encryption and decryption capabilities. It can be used not only for encrypting and decrypting e-mail messages but also for programming languages and Excel data. The application development utilizes techniques such as Diffe-Hellman, Mersenne Twister, and AES, arranged in layers to generate complex ciphertext that is difficult to decrypt without the developed application. LabVIEW was used for testing encryption speed. The attempt to attack encrypted data was subjected, but the result yielded no successful key retrieval.

Evaluating AI-Generated Emails: A Comparative Efficiency Analysis

This study investigates the efficiency of large language models (LLMs) in producing routine, negative, and persuasive business emails for educational purposes within the context of Business Writing. Specifically, it compares the outputs generated by four widely-used LLMs (ChatGPT 3.5, Llama 2, Bing Chat, and Bard) when presented with identical email scenarios. These generated emails are evaluated using an elaborate rubric, allowing for a systematic assessment of LLMs' performance across three distinct email types. The results of the study show that the output with the same prompt varies greatly despite the rather formulaic nature of business emails. For instance, some LLMs struggle with following the requested structure and maintaining consistency in tone, while others have issues with unity and conciseness. The findings of this research hold implications for teaching business writing (rubrics, task instructions, in-class implementation), as well as for the integration of AI in professional communication at large.

A method for optimizing text preprocessing and text classification using multiple cycles of learning with an application on shipbrokers emails

Optimizing text preprocessing and text classification algorithms is an important, everyday task in large organizations and companies and it usually involves a labor-intensive and time-consuming effort. For example, the filtering and sorting of a large number of electronic mails (emails) are crucial to keeping track of the received information and converting it automatically into useful and profitable knowledge. Business emails are often unstructured, noisy, and with many abbreviations and acronyms, which makes their handling a challenging procedure. To overcome those challenges, a two-step classification approach is proposed, along with a two-cycle labeling procedure in order to speed up the labeling process. Every step incorporates a heuristic classification approach to assign emails to predefined classes by comparing several classification and text vectorization algorithms. These algorithms are compared and evaluated using the F1 score and balanced accuracy. The implementation of the proposed algorithm is demonstrated in a shipbroker agent operating in Greece with excellent performance, improving organization and administration while reducing expenses.

Counteracting Cybercrimes in Florida

This article explores Florida's high rate of cybercrime and the efforts being made to combat it. Florida has the second-highest rate of cybercrime events in the United States, with significant financial losses. The most frequent dangers are call center fraud, ransomware, investment fraud, and business email compromise. Strong defense tactics, including multi-factor authentication, safe password policies, cybersecurity training, frequent software upgrades, network segmentation, and dependable backups, are emphasized throughout the text. It also emphasizes the importance of efficient incident response procedures, promoting teamwork, and using continuous monitoring to lessen cyber threats. The essay discusses the vital role that international collaborations and law enforcement play in the battle against cybercrime.

Trade Based Money Laundering Evidence from Indonesia: Cigarette Import Customs Smuggling and Money Laundering

Public-Private Partnership (PPP) is an instrument to strengthen synergy in eradicating money laundering and other economic crimes launched by the government of the Republic of Indonesia, with 3 (three) main priorities to be handled, namely trade-based money laundering (TBML), narcotics, and business email compromise (BEC). The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) defines Trade Based Money Laundering as the process of disguising the proceeds of crime and transferring value through the use of trade transactions in an attempt to legitimize its illegitimate origin. Customs is everything related to the supervision of the traffic of goods entering or leaving the customs area as well as the collection of import and export duties, the supervision of which is carried out by the Directorate General of Customs and Excise (DGCE). In import customs activities, importers are obliged to fulfill customs obligations, one of which is the inward manifest. The research aims to provide an overview of money laundering and violations in the Customs Sector. Using secondary data from 2019 to 2023 and primary data through interviews, to answer the research objectives using qualitative methods based on court decisions. The research results show that the mode of money laundering violations in the customs sector is smuggling of unmanifest imports of cigarettes without excise stamps attached using the ship-to-ship mode. In laundering money from the crime, the perpetrator hides or disguises the proceeds from the crime of selling cigarettes that are not attached with excise stamps by placing the money from cigarette sales in several accounts in the perpetrator's name and in other names as well as in other forms of assets. Research suggestions, violations in the customs sector that have sufficient evidence of a crime, apart from being able to investigate predicate crimes, money laundering investigations can be carried out so that asset recovery can be carried out and optimizing the PPP scheme in cracking down on money laundering.

Business Email Compromise (BEC) Fraud and How to Prevent it

Cybercrime is on the rise both at the national and cross-border levels. The latest mode of cybercrime is fraud using Business Email Compromise (BEC). A qualitive analysis method with literature study is applied to discuss two key questions of this paper. First, how does the BEC scheme occur?. Second, how an organization/company can prevent/mitigate the risk of BEC fraud. This paper concludes that BEC can be executed in the form of phishing emails sent by perpetrators (both internal and external actors of the organization) to the target victim (organization’s employees) in order to deceive and obtain financial gain. Various efforts can be made by an organization/company to prevent the risk of BEC fraud, among others in the form of implementing a risk management system, implementing an information security management system, and increasing the organization’s internal awareness.

Business Email Compromise (BEC) Attacks: Threats, Vulnerabilities and Countermeasures—A Perspective on the Greek Landscape

Business Email Compromise (BEC) attacks have emerged as serious threats to organizations in recent years, exploiting social engineering and malware to dupe victims into divulging confidential information and executing fraudulent transactions. This paper provides a comprehensive review of BEC attacks, including their principles, techniques, and impacts on enterprises. In light of the rising tide of BEC attacks globally and their significant financial impact on business, it is crucial to understand their modus operandi and adopt proactive measures to protect sensitive information and prevent financial losses. This study offers valuable recommendations and insights for organizations seeking to enhance their cybersecurity posture and mitigate the risks associated with BEC attacks. Moreover, we analyze the Greek landscape of cyberattacks, focusing on the existing regulatory framework and the measures taken to prevent and respond to cybercrime in accordance with the NIS Directives of the EU. By examining the Greek landscape, we gain insights into the effectiveness of countermeasures in this region, as well as the challenges and opportunities for improving cybersecurity practices.

Is driving experience all that matters? Drivers’ takeover performance in conditionally automated driving

Introduction: In conditionally automated driving, drivers are allowed to engage in non-driving related tasks (NDRTs) and are occasionally requested to take over vehicle control in situations that the automation system cannot handle. Drivers may not be able to adequately perform such requests if they have limited driving experience. This study investigates the influence of driving experience on takeover performance in conditionally automated driving. Method: Nineteen subjects participated in this driving simulator study. The NDRTs consisted of three tasks: writing business emails (working condition), watching videos (entertaining condition), and taking a break with eyes closed (resting condition). These three NDRTs require drivers to invest high, moderate, and low levels of mental workload, respectively. The duration of engagement in each NDRT before a takeover request (TOR) was either 5 minutes (short interval) or 30 minutes (long interval). Results: Drivers’ driving experience and performance during the control period are highly correlated with their TOR performance. Furthermore, the type and duration of NDRT influence TOR performance, and inexperienced drivers exhibit poorer TOR performance than experienced drivers. Conclusions and Practical Applications: These findings have relevance for the types of NDRTs that ought to be permitted during automated driving, the design of automated driving systems, and the formulation of regulations regarding the responsible use of automated vehicles.

ECOLINGUISTIC APPROACH TO THE STUDY OF MODERN ELECTRONIC BUSINESS COMMUNICATION

ECOLINGUISTIC APPROACH TO THE STUDY OF MODERN ELECTRONIC BUSINESS COMMUNICATION

Influence of non-driving related tasks on driving performance after takeover transition in conditionally automated driving

In conditionally automated driving, drivers are required to respond to takeover requests (TORs) and resume manual driving of the vehicle in situations where the conditionally automated driving systems are ineffective. Prior to TORs, the driver may be engaged in Non-Driving Related Tasks (NDRTs), and their manual driving performance after the takeover transition (post-automation) may require time to return to normal.This study investigated the influences of NDRTs on manual driving performance during the post-automation period. Seventeen volunteers participated in this driving simulator study. There were three NDRTs: writing business emails (working condition), watching videos (entertaining condition), and taking a break with eyes closed (resting condition). The duration of engagement in each NDRT before resuming manual driving was either 5 min (short interval) or 30 min (long interval). When TORs were made, drivers were given 10 s (TOR lead time) to switch from an NDRT to manual driving and then continue driving on a straight highway for 5 min.The results demonstrated that driving performance was impaired during the post-automation period. A significant detrimental effect on driving performance was observed for all three NDRT conditions and both task engagement durations. This effect was particularly evident for lane control, where drivers on average spent 4–8 s per minute outside of their lane for each of the five minutes following the TOR. These results indicate that driver engagement in other tasks, even for brief periods, can increase accident risk during the minutes following a TOR. Analysis of individual driving performance revealed a subset of 5 drivers who were strongly impaired, spending 10–25 s per minute outside of their lane throughout the post-automation period. These unsafe drivers could be accurately identified from their driving behaviour during the pre-automation (control) period. Surprisingly, participants were unaware that their degraded driving performance following the takeover. These findings extend the understanding of the disruptive effect of cognitive set-switching while driving and have important implications for the design and safety of autonomous vehicles.