The Australian Federal Police (AFP) have arrested four alleged members of an organized crime group known for carrying out business email compromise (BEC) attacks, BleepingComputer reports. The victims of the gang’s attacks lost between $2,500 and $500,000.
“Four members of an alleged cyber criminal syndicate accused of money laundering $1.7 million in stolen cash from Australian and overseas victims have been charged in Brisbane, Adelaide and Melbourne,” the AFP said in a statement. “The AFP alleges the syndicate orchestrated more than 15 sophisticated cybercrime incidents between January, 2020, and March, 2023, and set up more than 80 bank accounts with stolen identities to help transfer the money out of Australia.”
Chris Goldsmid, AFP Commander of Cybercrime Operations, stated that Australians lost more than $98 million last year to these types of BEC attacks.
“Business email compromise has become a particularly prominent cyber threat, which is why the AFP, through Operation Dolos, remains focused on protecting Australians who are being targeted in these attacks,” Commander Goldsmid said. “Australians reported losses of more than $98 million to business email compromise attacks in the past year alone, with an average loss of $64,000 per reported incident. As a result of this investigation, and with the assistance of several financial institutions, the AFP was able to identify nearly 80 fraudulent accounts being used by the syndicate and begin to shut them down.
Goldsmid added that organizations need to be on the lookout for these types of attacks.
“Now, more than ever, we need individuals and businesses to remain hyper vigilant when conducting online transactions,” “Educate yourself on the latest scams and take the time to triple check the details of your transactions – not doing so could cost you your life savings.”
New-school security awareness training can enable your employees to thwart BEC and other social engineering attacks.
BleepingComputer has the story.
CEO fraud has ruined the careers of many executives and loyal employees, causing over $26 billion in losses. Don’t be the next victim. This manual provides a thorough overview of how executives are compromised, how to prevent such an attack and what to do if you become a victim.
