13 stories this week:
An elaborate LinkedIn scam led to one of the largest heists in crypto history – 8 July 2022
An elaborate LinkedIn scam was the source of one of the world’s largest crypto heists. An employee at Sky Mavis, the developer of the Axie Infinity Game was approached via LinkedIn with a fake job offer. The scammers then abused the trust they had developed to infect the individual’s device with malware. The hack saw 173,600 ether and 25.5 million USD Coin stolen, totalling $625 million in value.
Police charge man after more than $170,000 stolen during BEC scam – 8 July 2022
Detectives have charged a man over his alleged involvement in a business email compromise scam, against a Sydney telecommunications business. The business deposited $177,000 into a fraudulent account upon receiving an altered invoice for payment.
https://www.miragenews.com/police-charge-man-after-more-than-170000-stolen-815871/
Five big trends in how Australians are getting scammed – 8 July 2022
According to the ACCC, Australians lost an estimated $2 billion to fraudsters, more than double that of 2022. Top of the list are investment scams, dating and romance scams, false billing, remote access scams and threats or blackmail. Article details the five scam types that have grown most in value from 2020.
https://www.themandarin.com.au/194202-five-big-trends-in-how-australians-are-getting-scammed/
Crypto could lead to royal commission within a decade: McGrathNicol – 11 July 2022
A lack of regulation around the spruiking of cryptocurrency assets and services is leaving consumers at risk of poor advice and fraud, with the avenues of recourse unclear, restructuring and advisory firm McGrathNicol warns.
Access to Digital version of AFR required to read article
South Australian man pleads guilty to falsifying payslips to help Vietnamese migrants secure home loans – 11 July 2022
Lam Duc Vu, who was a Justice of the Peace, provided false payslips to banks, in a bid to help Vietnamese migrants buy properties, that they otherwise could not have secured. He pleaded guilty to at least 10 counts of dishonest dealings with documents between 2016 and 2017.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-07-11/sa-man-falsifies-payslips-for-home-loans/101227966
Kristi Anne Barden, 46, sentenced to four years in prison after pleading guilty to one theft charge and 47 fraud charges – 11 July 2022
A mother-of-two was sentenced to four years in prison for stealing more than $178,000 from her bosses. Perth’s Kristi Anne Barden billed her employer – an environmental advisory group called Strategen – for luxury vacations and a rental car, and kept a company laptop even after she was laid off.
Indian police bust fake cricket league streamed for Russian punters – 12 July 2022
Police in India have shut down an elaborate hoax cricket league that saw labourers masquerading as professional cricket players, allegedly to dupe gamblers in Russia. The organisers broadcasted at least five matches on YouTube, before the police intervened. Gamblers bet almost $6,000 on the results and four people have been arrested in relation to the fake match.
ACCC calls for banks to name check transfers to cut fraud – 12 July 2022
Banks are being pressured to ensure money transferred online, arrives in the correct account, by confirming the name of the intended recipient. A move the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission says will reduce the $420 million worth of frauds that occur each year.
Access to digital version of AFR required to read article
‘Whack-a-mole’: Scam text crackdown to force telcos into action – 12 July 2022
Australians frustrated with scam text messages will be protected under new rules that force Telcos to track and block fraud, but experts warn the efforts won’t stop worsening financial crime.
https://thenewdaily.com.au/finance/finance-news/2022/07/12/text-scam-acma/
Chinese bank scam victims to be repaid after protests turn violent – 12 July 2022
Approx. 10 million people are calling on the authorities to return tens of billions of yuan of deposits in a suspected financial scam. It has prompted the banking watchdog to speed up drafting a plan to resolve risks even as a police investigation is still ongoing.
Kmart, Bunnings investigated for facial recognition us – 13 July 2022
Kmart and Bunnings will be called before the Information Commissioner, to explain exactly how their use of facial recognition to monitor customers in their stores, is in line with Australian privacy laws, following last month’s revelations that retailers had quietly begun using the controversial surveillance technology.
https://ia.acs.org.au/article/2022/kmart–bunnings-investigated-for-facial-recognition-use.html
Josh’s tax file number was stolen. Now his personal data is at risk – and his money – 14 July 2022
An ABC Radio presenter in Brisbane, was shocked when his accountant informed him his TFN had been blocked by the ATO because it had been “compromised”, and he could not file his tax return. A stolen TFN could mean that refunds and documents could be obtained without your knowledge or permission. A good reminder to check your MyGov and superannuation accounts.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-07-14/tax-file-number-theft-warning-tax-return-time/101235304
ASIC investigation uncovers ‘concerning consumer losses from trading in CFDs’ – 14 July 2022
Following an ASIC investigation, Sirius Financial was found engaging an offshore call centre, to source clients to trade in high-risk contracts-for-difference (CFDs) and margin foreign exchange contracts products. It was found that the call centre representatives used “pressure selling tactics” and provided clients with personal advice without the licence to do so.
