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A Closer Look at Cyberattacks and Wire Fraud a GUIDE to COMMON CYBERTHEFT SCHEMES TARGETING BUSINESSES TODAY

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A Closer Look at Cyberattacks and Wire Fraud a GUIDE to COMMON CYBERTHEFT SCHEMES TARGETING BUSINESSES TODAY A Closer Look at Cyberattacks and Wire Fraud A GUIDE TO COMMON CYBERTHEFT SCHEMES TARGETING BUSINESSES TODAY Fall 2019 A CLOSER LOOK AT CYBERATTACKS 2 Cybercrime: More common Email Fraud Succeeds Every Day Email fraud, already one of today’s biggest cyberthreats, shows no than you might think. signs of letting up. That’s the sobering conclusion to Proofpoint’s Unfortunately, cybercrime is a reality for businesses today. While research into this growing category of cyberattacks. “Attackers the online world brings added efficiency and convenience, it are sending more fraudulent emails. They’re impersonating more also offers cyberthieves ways to penetrate an organization’s people. And they’re targeting more recipients.” defenses or trick employees into falling for costly scams. In fact, Email fraud is a broad category. It includes business email over 80% of organizations were targets of actual or attempted compromise (BEC), a type of wire fraud, and other threats in which payments fraud in 2018.1 the attacker uses some form of identity deception that seeks to exploit people. They all involve impersonation tactics to pose as trusted colleagues and business partners. Email fraud affects 82% 3 73% 74% 78% organizations of every size, across every industry. 60% 62% A Cyberthief’s Toolbox Today, cybersecurity isn’t just the IT or operations department’s issue; it’s every employee’s issue. As such, it’s important to note 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 that, in general, a cyberthief’s tools can only work when someone on your staff takes the bait and clicks on the wrong email, the wrong link, or the wrong attachment. Today’s cybercrime is Small and Mid-sized Businesses Are Targets designed to take advantage of the elements of human nature— trust, the desire to please superiors and the pressure to complete Unfortunately, small and mid-sized businesses remain attractive tasks quickly. targets for cybercriminals. Inc. magazine, in a 2018 survey, reports two out of five cyberattacks target small businesses. The risk is increasing at an accelerating rate, and many businesses are not Key takeaway: A cyberthief only succeeds if prepared to be targets. you click. Most businesses have no active plan to respond to cyberthreats. Even more disturbing is the lack of awareness about what cyberthreats actually look like. In one study, researchers A cyberthief’s treacherous toolbox includes two main tools: asked small business owners if they’d experienced any form of cybercrime.2 Only 13% said they had. Yet when those same • Social engineering attacks involve online schemes small business owners were shown a list of different types of that lull victims into divulging sensitive information cyberattacks, the percentage being victimized rose to 58%. It’s or even trick them into performing a task (such not the well-publicized data breaches that are the biggest risks. as an ACH or wire transfer) for the thief. Business are attacked with ordinary scams like spear phishing • Malware is any type of malicious software used to and account takeover fraud where the tactics haven’t changed compromise victims’ computers or networks. for over ten years. Key takeaway: Social engineering attacks lull victims into divulging sensitive information. A CLOSER LOOK AT CYBERATTACKS 3 Both threats have been around for decades in various forms and HOW BUSINESS EMAIL COMPROMISE WORKS: continue to evolve. Some schemes directly steal money, while others go after employee credentials (usernames, passwords, etc.) and sensitive company data. Social engineering and malware Using the CEO’s email address, the bad can even be used in conjunction to open the door for software 1 guy sends an email to a targeted finance and surveillance that makes the cybercriminal’s job easier in the or corporate accounting employee. future. The complex nature of these threats makes it imperative to have a good basic understanding of what they look like and how they work. Cybercrime Attacks Human nature is a powerful thing, which is what makes social The employee receives an email from the engineering attacks such popular and successful ways for 2 “CEO” instructing them to wire funds to cyberthieves to work. Business Email Compromise, spear phishing pay for a business-related expense. and pretexting are three of the most common types of social engineering attacks. BUSINESS EMAIL COMPROMISE Business Email Compromise (BEC) continues to be the #1 most commonly reported cybercrime according to the FBI. In BEC or email fraud schemes, an employee (often in the accounting department) is sent an email that appears as though it has Money is then wired or sent by ACH to 3 an account controlled by the crook. come from a high-ranking company executive or a supplier. The fraudulent email usually includes names, wire or ACH payment details, an amount, and a convincing reason for the request. Eager to please a higher-ranking executive or supplier, the unsuspecting employee quickly follows the instructions and wires the money to the criminal’s account. Key takeaway: Exercise caution when opening emails. A CLOSER LOOK AT CYBERATTACKS 4 These emails are often scheduled to coincide with an executive’s However, spear phishing is also used in conjunction with other travel plans, making it more difficult to quickly confirm the veracity techniques to fulfill a cybercriminal’s scheme. of the request with the exec in question. Cleverly, they’re often • Infected Attachments – For instance, seemingly legitimate crafted to look like previous requests, statements or invoices so links and email attachments can be used as a means of as not to arouse suspicion. And given that many BEC emails are infecting the user’s computer or mobile device with malware. written in plaintext from legitimate (compromised) email accounts Know the source of any link or attachment you open. and don’t include links, they often get past email security systems and spam filters. • Credential Theft – Another technique is used for credential theft. It is called typosquatting. Here, thieves Businesses should also watch out for newer variations on BEC create a fraudulent web page designed to look like that scams: of a supplier, vendor or technology partner, etc. using a • Fake invoices that modify routing numbers to send common misspelling of the legitimate company’s URL. payments to the criminal’s account Then targets are sent emails directing them to verify details of their account with a link to the fraudulent • Requests for checks mailed to an address rather than the page. If they log in, cyberthieves can harvest their normal wire or ACH payments credentials to log into their accounts and steal funds, • Requests to update an employee’s direct deposit account or access the company network to install malware. details and divert payroll into the crook’s account • Pretexting – Pretexting can take many forms and is often • Requests for personal data on employees or customers; perpetrated via phone or email. Commonly, it involves divulged social security numbers have been used to needing to confirm a piece of information such as a bank file fake refund claims account number or answering security questions to proceed with a transaction. This information can then be Use common sense to detect questionable emails. Question used later by cybercriminals in more complex schemes. any emails requesting actions that seem unusual or aren’t following normal procedures. Don’t reply to any emails that seem suspicious. Obtain the sender’s address from the corporate Did You Know? address book and ask them about the message. If unsure, ask a supervisor for help and direction. Phishing emails still have a 20% open rate. SPEAR PHISHING Spear phishing is a targeted approach meant to take advantage of an employee’s conditioned responses to seemingly common requests. These include emails about supplier invoices, shipping payments, software updates and more. Business Email Compromise, mentioned in the previous section, is one type of spear phishing. A CLOSER LOOK AT CYBERATTACKS 5 Malware Staying Safe Malware is a constantly evolving threat that comes in many forms, Preventing your company from being exploited by cybercriminals each designed to exploit vulnerabilities in software, operating takes much more than the latest antivirus software and vigilance systems, web browsers, etc. These malicious pieces of software in keeping software up-to-date. These things help, but because can infect your device or network if you or an employee clicks cybercriminals often rely on the human factor, the most important on an untrustworthy link, email attachment or download sent by steps businesses can take are to update internal security cybercriminals. processes, educate staff and take advantage of all the security CORPORATE ACCOUNT TAKEOVER solutions offered by your bank. Once the malware is installed, cybercriminals take control of the For more information on how to protect your business from target’s bank account—a type of identity theft known as Corporate cybercrime, please contact a Treasury Services representative. Account Takeover. The cyberthieves use a type of malware called spyware, which allows them to monitor and record your online activity, log your keystrokes and more. Then, thieves log into your business’s bank account and initiate fraudulent ACH or wire Hancock Whitney will never call you or transfers to their own accounts. Thieves can also steal customer your employee to ask for account records and credit card data to sell on the dark web. numbers, passwords or PINs. MAN-IN-THE-MIDDLE Cybercriminals may install malware that hijacks the victim’s web browser during online banking sessions in what’s known as Man-in-the-Middle (or Man-in-the-Browser) attacks. After disconnecting the legitimate user, cybercriminals take control of the online banking session and begin initiating fraudulent payments. Key takeaway: Links, email attachments and fraudulent software downloads are all ways cybercriminals spread malware.
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