FBI: $2.3 Billion Lost to CEO Email Scams
Summary: The FBI warned of a 270 percent increase since January 2015 in victims and exposed losses from CEO fraud, email scams that spoof a message from an executive to trick employees into wiring funds, with estimated losses above $2.3 billion over three years. The agency reported complaints from every U.S. state and at least 79 countries, with average losses of $25,000 to $75,000 per victimized organization and individual incidents including $46.7 million at Ubiquiti, $17.2 million at The Scoular Co., and $3 million at Mattel.
Bottom line: The FBI's $2.3 billion figure covers only reported losses, and the schemes sidestep spam filters and bank account-takeover controls because the attacker persuades an employee to send the wire rather than touching the bank directly.
Read the original at Krebs on Security ↗
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