The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre and United States Secret Service stop $750,000 fraud transfer

@ South Asia Journal Desk

The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) shared a notification about a possible Business Email Compromise (BEC) scam with the United States Secret Service (USSS) Ottawa Field Office that resulted in saving a U.S. based company from losing almost $750,000 (U.S.) and a number of jobs. In order to respect the privacy of the victim, we will not be sharing the name of the company at this time.

This success was made possible because a Canadian company reported the scam to CAFC in June. The CAFC notified partners, including the USSS, about the scam and the related account. The USSS shared the notification further with their contacts leading a bank investigator to discover that a U.S. company was transferring almost $750,000 (U.S.) to this fraudulent account.

The bank investigator put a hold on the transfer, contacted the company and began procedures to reverse the funds. A company employee expressed their thanks and said the interception had potentially saved jobs.

BEC scams among the most financially damaging online scams. In a BEC scam, a fraudster will send an email that is spoofed to look like it’s coming from a known and trusted source. The following are examples of a BEC message:

• A business receives a duplicate invoice with updated payment details supposedly from an existing supplier or contractor.
• An accountant or financial planner receives a large withdrawal request that looks like it’s coming from their client’s email.
• Payroll receives an email claiming to be from an employee looking to update their bank account information.
• An email that seems to come from a trusted source asks you to download an attachment, but the attachment is malware that infiltrates an entire network or infrastructure
• An email that seems to come from trusted source asks you to buy gift cards.

If you have been a victim of scam, fraud or cybercrime, please contact your local police. We also encourage you to report an instance, whether you are a victim or not, with the CAFC via the Online Reporting System or by phone at 1-888-495-8501. By filing a report, you can provide invaluable information that could protect others.