Queensland law firms lose millions to hackers in ‘highly sophisticated’ email scam. According to a report in the Brisbane Times, At least two Queensland law firms have lost several million dollars after falling victim to a “highly sophisticated” email scam, prompting an urgent warning from the Queensland Law Society. Full article here.
According to an indepth review by Security Brief Hackers commandeered the email accounts of staff at the law firms by tricking them into revealing their email account login details before hijacking payments from clients.
The lawyers who fell for this scam were targeted with phone calls from people who said they were seeking legal representation. The phone calls seemed legitimate; after explaining their problems the callers promised to email the lawyers with ‘important documents’ related to their cases. This whole process was a trick designed to collect the lawyer’s email login passwords.
Across the globe; $1.5m recent Australian Deposit Fraud, Wire Fraud in the US $969 million or in the UK APP Scams £101 million.
How can the risks from such “email scams” and “deposit fraud” be mitigated. According to the experts: to achieve cyber resilience you should focus on developing tangible habits that eventually lead to good cyber hygiene.
Beginning with protecting your crown jewels – your bank accounts. You need to change banking behavior from thoughtless to thoughtful, starting with using a secure browser to conduct your online banking. Introducing Australian Cyber Security company BankVault’s SafeWindow. Much like washing your hands, the simple act of banking using SafeWindow reminds you of the risks and sets you on a course of cyber resilience.
Even with 2 factor authentication, hackers can target your weakest link; your computer. SafeWindow launches a ‘virtual machine’, which self‐updates each time you login, providing security against ransomware and malware attacks. Your online activity will remain completely anonymous to cybercriminals, as it is all hidden in the cloud, completely separated from your physical computer and the threats that target it. You can also use SafeWindow as a quarantine zone, opening attachments to ensure you are not infecting your computer.
