A 120 year old company was targeted by a spear-phishing attack that netted $17.2 million.–PC Pitstop
SpearPhish Attack Nets $17M in 3 Days
By Stu Sjouwerman, for KnowBe4.com Security Awareness Training
Corporate cybercrime on an international scale has hit one of Omaha’s biggest and oldest companies. CEO Chuck Elsea’s email address was spoofed and this cost them millions because their controller fell for the scam.
The Scoular Co., an employee-owned commodities trader founded 120 years ago, was a victim of spear-phishing costing them $17.2 million in an international scam, according to federal court documents filed by the FBI last month in U.S. District Court in Omaha.
Scoular’s controller McMurtry was the one who was sent spoofed emails, and he wired the money in three installments last summer to a bank in China after receiving emails ordering him to do so.
The three wire transfers, the FBI says, happened in June 2014. They were prompted by emails purported to be from Scoular CEO Elsea, but were sent from an email address that wasn’t his normal company one.
