Criminals used an Australian company to launder $450,000, but no charges were laid – 9 April 2024
Peter Correy thought he was buying Treasury bonds from an Australian oil company, but instead, his money was sent offshore and the company refused to give it back. Weaknesses in Australia’s regulatory system are being exploited by criminals to launder money through company bank accounts and experts want action taken to stop it. Financial crime experts say the government needs to move faster to simplify and expand Australia’s Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing laws.
Nursing executives stood down pending investigation of ‘potential financial irregularities’ – 10 April 2024
The board of the Australian College of Nursing has hired independent legal and forensic financial experts to investigate “potential financial irregularities”. Three executives have been stood down while the investigation takes place but the industry body says “no conclusions should be drawn at this time”.The investigation will continue into next week.
Australian register of stolen data blocks more than 300,000 attempts of identity fraud – 10 April 2024
A register of stolen credentials that was created after the 2022 Optus data breach has blocked more than 300,000 attempts of identity fraud.
Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus says the register disrupts other illegal activities that rely on stolen credentials, such as scams and money laundering. He added that protections against privacy breaches would be strengthened in coming months.
Cyber criminals gather together, researchers find – 11 April 2024
An Australia-UK-French research team nominated Russia, Ukraine, China, the USA, Nigeria and Romania as key cyber crime host countries. Australia ranked 34 on the list.
The World Cybercrime Index is designed to let law enforcement and the private sector to concentrate their efforts on “key cyber crime hubs”, co-author Dr Miranda Bruce of UNSW Canberra said.
https://www.itnews.com.au/news/cyber-criminals-gather-together-researchers-find-606846
Adelaide surgeon James Ian Spark handed suspended sentence over $50k fraud – 11 April 2024
James Ian Spark pleaded guilty to multiple deception charges relating to more than $52,000 worth of fraudulent claims. During sentencing, a magistrate said the “most serious” deception related to “an entirely fictitious patient, Ms Smith”. Spark’s medical registration is “highly likely” to be suspended, the court heard.
Charges against Meta sparked by Andrew Forrest over false cryptocurrency ads on Facebook discontinued – 12 April 2024
Criminal charges against Meta for publishing scam cryptocurrency ads featuring Andrew Forrest have been discontinued in a Perth court. Mr Forrest wanted Meta to be held accountable for the ads, which he argued targeted the vulnerable. A civil court case filed in the US by Mr Forrest against Meta is ongoing in California.
Tycoon’s death penalty in $12.5 billion fraud case highlights Vietnam’s corruption crisis – 12 April 2024
The death sentence handed to a real estate tycoon in a $12.5 billion financial fraud case is the latest punishment meted out by Vietnam in the Southeast Asian country’s sweeping “blazing furnace” anti-corruption campaign. Truong My Lan, was found guilty of bribery, violating bank regulations and embezzlement, and sentenced to death, though her family has indicated she will appeal.
Russian hackers steal US government emails from Microsoft – 12 April 2024
Russian state-backed hackers have stolen email correspondence between US government agencies and Microsoft via a breach of the software giant’s systems. Microsoft has notified “several” US federal agencies that the hackers may have stolen emails that Microsoft sent to those agencies that included login information such as usernames, or passwords.
Suncorp’s bank suffers breach, customer funds stolen – 12 April 2024
Insurance and banking conglomerate Suncorp is dealing with a cyberattack in which an intruder has accessed some customers’ bank balances and withdrawn funds. But the institution says it has found the funds and returned them to affected account holders in full, which is unusual in digital breaches where stolen funds are often rapidly funnelled out of the country.
https://www.afr.com/technology/suncorp-s-bank-suffers-breach-customer-funds-stolen-20240412-p5fjfx
Roku says 576,000 user accounts hacked after second security incident – 13 April 2024
Roku said about 576,000 user accounts were accessed using a technique known as credential stuffing, where malicious hackers use usernames and passwords stolen from other data breaches and reuse the logins on other sites. Roku said in fewer than 400 account breaches, the malicious hackers made fraudulent purchases of Roku hardware and streaming subscriptions using the payment data stored in those users’ accounts.
https://techcrunch.com/2024/04/12/roku-second-user-accounts-hacked/
‘AI pimps’ and their fake influencers are mass-harvesting women’s videos to peddle porn – 14 April 2024
ABC Investigations has identified a north-east Adelaide man, Antonio Alvaro, as a member of an international network of these so-called “AI pimps” that is engaging in mass misuse of women’s images to help sell porn subscriptions. It involves creating faces with AI and then transplanting them onto videos of women’s bodies sourced from social media accounts.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-04-14/how-ai-pimps-influencers-are-using-womens-videos/103658046
Digital driver’s licences are becoming common but without security standards people are vulnerable to fraud, theft – 15 April 2024
Cyber security experts are warning unless digital driver’s licence apps meet internationally recognised security standards, they could increase risks of fraud. They are calling on state governments to ensure digital licence apps are built to the “gold class” standards. Victorians will gain access to digital driver’s licences next month, as the state becomes the fourth to launch the new form of ID.
Optus customer in $10,000 fraud attack forced to leave telco altogether after second breach – 17 April 2024
Just days after Townsville man Andrew Ryder regained control of his stolen phone number, criminals accessed his Optus account again. He had recently lost $10,000 to fraudsters and was in the process of replacing cards and changing bank accounts. Optus said fraud-affected customers should change their phone numbers and passwords.
Concerning spike in celebrity endorsement scams – 18 April 2024
Recently Dr Karl is seen promoting various health products that have been published on Facebook and Instagram. Generative AI blurs the line between fact and fiction, scammers are being given a shiny new toolbox of tricks to try and lure us in. This podcast explains.
University of Sydney professor fights sacking, claims bribery and corruption – 18 April 2024
A senior brain researcher who accused a Sydney University academic of attempting to bribe and blackmail another staff member is suing the institution after he was fired for “serious misconduct”. Professor Manuel Graeber, a leading neuropathologist who was the university’s Barnet-Cropper chair of brain tumour research, says he was sacked because he made serious allegations about university management.
