11 stories this week:
Elaborate scam allegedly used leading finance app to trick victims out of superannuation – 4 October 2022
Australian victims of a sophisticated superannuation scam have raised concerns about how they were given access to a leading finance app, which they claim gave them false confidence their money was safe. ASIC is investigating a “third party” in relation to the scam.
Banks ‘cyber mature’ but remain top target for scammers – 5 October 2022
Criminals exploiting snippets of personal information to trick customers and employees into opening themselves and their firms to fraud remains the top way Australian financial services businesses are initially breached. Social engineering attacks are also the main way hackers and scammers initially got into financial services companies, using it as a Trojan horse for phishing, fraud and false billing.
Access to digital version of AFR required to read article.
Australian Firm Costa Group Suffers Phishing Attack – 8 October 2022
Australian fruit and vegetable supplier Costa Group says it was subjected to a malicious and sophisticated phishing attack in August, that resulted in unauthorized access to its servers. Sensitive information stolen may include workers’ passport details, bank details, superannuation details and tax file numbers.
https://www.bankinfosecurity.com/australian-firm-costa-group-suffers-phishing-attack-a-20231
‘Large-scale’ GST fraud sees ATO allegedly scammed out of more than $1.8 million – 8 October 2022
The ATO was defrauded of more than $1.8 million through falsified Business Activity Statements. The offenders are accused of inventing fake businesses and submitting fictitious Business Activity Statements, in an attempt to gain a false GST refund.
Former Ipswich council figures charged ratepayers $30,000 for exclusive Brisbane Club dining and memberships – 13 October 2022
More than $30,000 worth of boozy dinners, family perks and ongoing memberships by former senior Ipswich council figures were spent at an exclusive Brisbane Club. Mayor Teresa Harding has labelled the spending “utterly disgusting” and is calling for a forensic audit.
ACCC issues warning as farmers hit by online scammers taking advantage of supply shortages – 13 October 2022
Almost 300 reports of fraudulent sales of tractors and other farm machinery have been made to the ACCC’s Scamwatch between January and August this year, a 21 per cent increase in reports made for the same period in 2021. The ACCC says the sale of fake tractors and heavy machinery alone resulted in losses of $1 million.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2022-10-13/accc-warn-farmers-of-tractor-scams/101526024
Police charge man with hundreds of identity fraud offences, South Brisbane – 13 October 2022
A 30-year-old man was arrested by detectives and charged with more than 300 offences, predominantly relating to identity fraud offences, spanning at least two years. The charges relate not only to the alleged possession of the identification information belonging to more than 160 people, but also to alleged threats made to victims of the frauds, who attempted to take back their online identities, which had been hacked by the man.
https://www.miragenews.com/police-charge-man-with-hundreds-of-identity-873590/
China’s mysterious police presence in Sydney – 13 October 2022
It has been revealed this week that a web of police “service stations” have been set up around the world by the People’s Republic of China, ostensibly to help Chinese nationals renew their government-issued identification and drivers’ licenses. But according to a human rights group, the stations have been used to spy on the Chinese diaspora for the Chinese Communist Party. The report accuses stations overseas of involvement in forcibly “returning” more than 200,000 overseas nationals to China.
Optus data breach exposes surveillance capitalism – 13 October 2022
The Optus data breach in late September involved the data of about 10 million customers. It has raised important privacy concerns and led to questions about how personal data is managed by private and public entities. A 2-year review of the Privacy Act, which ended in January, had not yet released information. The Australian Information Industry Association is now calling on the federal government to release an exposure draft before the end of the year.
https://www.greenleft.org.au/content/optus-data-breach-exposes-surveillance-capitalism
Hillsong whistleblower allegedly stood down for giving information to charities regulator, court told – 13 October 2022
Natalie Moses, a Hillsong whistleblower alleges she was unlawfully disciplined for providing information to the charities regulator, during an investigation into the global church’s accounts.
A deep dive into a corporate espionage operation – 12 October 2022
There has been a dramatic shift in the level of sophistication of cyberattacks. The article explores data exfiltration and the threat of industrial espionage and explains why these attacks are on the rise.
https://securitybrief.com.au/story/a-deep-dive-into-a-corporate-espionage-operation
