On Twitter “I read your article with curiosity until you ruined it. You could’ve used it for genuine engagement than self-aggrandizement, bitterness, and bashing the diaspora.”
Pax Mafioso: The geopolitical side to the Medibank ransom attack
New York: Hacker who stole $3.3 billion in bitcoin from dark web marketplace Silk Road pleads guilty; bitcoin seized
Security researcher Ronnie Tokazowki and his team provided real gift cards to scammers doing BEC fraud, and tracked what happened to them
- At least one scammer admitted to being in Nigeria
- All were cashed out within 24 hours
- Scammers wanted store cards, not ones from credit card companies
A note on terminology: As readers know, several years ago some romance scammers tweaked this scam so that instead of needing money for an emergency, they instead urge victims to invest in crypto. It looks like the scammers refer to this as “pig butchering,” a loathsome expression that tells us nothing about the scam itself. The Fraud Report will continue to use the term romance scam, and where appropriate will note that it involves crypto investments.
Consumer education note: The Christmas holidays are coming right up, and we are seeing a huge wave of fake companies advertising goods, especially on Facebook. Now is the time to start getting the word out about online shopping frauds, and to alert people that if they are ripped off they can challenge the charges if on PayPal or by credit card. Background on this topic can be found here: online shopping fraud
New links!
Fraud Studies: Here are links to the studies I’ve written for the Better Business Bureau: puppy fraud, romance fraud; BEC fraud, sweepstakes/lottery fraud, tech support fraud, romance fraud money mules, crooked movers, government imposters, online vehicle sale scams, rental fraud, gift cards, free trial offer frauds, job scams, online shopping fraud, and crypto scams
Fraud News Around the world
- Florida Attorney General receives award for shutting down 19 crooked moving scam operations
- CAFC in Canada seeing big jump in texts, phone calls, claiming to be from a bank fraud department
- Ireland: Scam gangs accused of arson against money mules who might keep stolen money or cooperate with law enforcement
- French Speaking hackers steal $11 million from banks, mainly in Africa
- CBC: Inside massive bust of crooked movers in Ontario
- US consumers lost $5 billion to student loan scams this year
- Laos rescues 11 from India from phone scam operation
- Australia finds mules carrying drugs are often scam victims
- Hackers in India earn big money working for private investigators around the world
- How scammers use misspelled domain names to draw in victims and install malware
- Nigeria charges couple, 16 others, for internet fraud; all plead guilty
- Three arrested in Belfast for laundering scam money
- Oklahoma: Four, including four Canadians, get prison for scheme to use stolen credit cards to buy event tickets and PPE
- Pennsylvania state rep gets reelected – even though he is dead
- Florida woman arrested after she bites boyfriend in fight over sex toy
- Man arrested for DUI claims paranormal activity explains why he was missing two wheels
- New York: Man (Nigerian?) convicted of PPP EIDL fraud; got $1 million, tried to get $10 million; used stolen ID’s; previously sentenced to prison for laundering money
- Florida: Man gets 84 months prison for PPP fraud; got $832,000
- Maine: Man gets 20 months prison for PPP fraud
- New York: Restaurant owner pleads guilty to PPP fraud; got $1.5 million
- Iowa audit finds State paid $238,000 in Covid unemployment benefits to people who were in prison or dead
- Cleveland: Man gets 3 ½ years prison for PPP fraud
- Colorado: Man charged with PPP fraud; got $952,000
- New York fugitive wanted for PPP fraud spotted and arrested at Disney World by postal inspector
- Massachusetts: Man gets 15 months prison for PPP fraud; got $400,000
- Virginia: Three years prison for man who conspired with 37 others for fraud in getting unemployment benefits
- Virginia: Man pleads guilty to fraud in applying for unemployment benefits; caught after high speed chase; got between $550,000 and $3.5 million
- New York: Woman gets 16 months prison for PPP fraud; got $1.6 million
- Attack on public school system in Norman, Oklahoma
- Hits huge German auto parts maker Continental
- Attack on water monitoring system in New South Wales
- Breach at Bed, Bath and Beyond
- Multinational media conglomerate Thompson Reuters loses massive amount of data
- MoneyGram now allows people to buy and sell crypto with its app
- SEC sues crypto operation Trade Coin Club with operating a Ponzi scheme that got $295 million from investors around the world