iTnews
  • Home
  • News
  • Technology
  • Security

Gang uses high tech in cheque fraud crime

By Iain Thomson on Aug 3, 2010 12:19PM

No arrests made yet.

A criminal gang thought to be operating out of Russia has used technology to revive a very old form of fraud – writing bad cheques.

The criminals broke into three cheque archiving image sites, which are used to store pictures of all cheques that are passed through retailers. They downloaded 200,000 examples and used the banking information, sort codes and signatures to write cheques for over 1,200 legitimate accounts.

A team at SecureWorks, an Atlanta computer security company, uncovered the fraud, which is thought to have netted the gang at least US$9m. It is working with the FBI but so far none of the gang have been arrested.

Counterfeit cheque writing is a very old form of fraud but the gang had put a high tech twist on it said John Stewart, chief executive of SecureWorks. He said that the sites involved had been notified but others were no doubt being targeted.

The gang sent out the bogus cheques to ‘money mules’ around the world using overnight shipping paid for with stolen credit cards, he said. The company said that six mules had been contacted and all denied sending money to the gang.

The gang wrote 3,285 cheques against 1,280 accounts since June 2009 he said. Most were for less than US$3,000, as an attempt to evade banks' anti-fraud measures.

Got a news tip for our journalists? Share it with us anonymously here.
Copyright ©v3.co.uk
Tags:
blackcrimeganghathighinlowsecuritytechuses

Partner Content

Security: Understanding the fundamentals of governance, risk & compliance
Promoted Content Security: Understanding the fundamentals of governance, risk & compliance
How to turn digital complexity into competitive advantage
Promoted Content How to turn digital complexity into competitive advantage
Avoiding CAPEX by making on-premise IT more cloud-like
Promoted Content Avoiding CAPEX by making on-premise IT more cloud-like
The Great Resignation has intensified insider security threats
Promoted Content The Great Resignation has intensified insider security threats

Sponsored Whitepapers

Free eBook: Digital Transformation 101 – for banks
Free eBook: Digital Transformation 101 – for banks
Why financial services need to tackle their Middle Office
Why financial services need to tackle their Middle Office
Learn: The latest way to transfer files between customers
Learn: The latest way to transfer files between customers
Extracting the value of data using Unified Observability
Extracting the value of data using Unified Observability
Planning before the breach: You can’t protect what you can’t see
Planning before the breach: You can’t protect what you can’t see

Events

  • Forrester Technology & Innovation Asia Pacific 2022
By Iain Thomson
Aug 3 2010
12:19PM
0 Comments

Related Articles

  • EU lawmakers pass landmark tech rules
  • Apple's Cook says proposed EU tech rules threaten security of iPhones
  • Vic school IT audit finds slow internet, unnecessary software purchases
  • Russians arrest REvil ransomware raiders
Share on Twitter Share on Facebook Share on LinkedIn Share on Whatsapp Email A Friend

Most Read Articles

Services Australia sets changeover date for myGov

Services Australia sets changeover date for myGov

Google Cloud IoT Core goes on the end-of-life list

Google Cloud IoT Core goes on the end-of-life list

NBN Co proposes to axe CVC across all plans by mid-2026

NBN Co proposes to axe CVC across all plans by mid-2026

NSW Police dumps Bezos-backed Mark43 from core systems overhaul

NSW Police dumps Bezos-backed Mark43 from core systems overhaul

Digital Nation

Edge and IoT critical to Web3 infrastructure
Edge and IoT critical to Web3 infrastructure
CommBank’s mobile banking app beats ANZ, NAB, Suncorp and Westpac: Forrester
CommBank’s mobile banking app beats ANZ, NAB, Suncorp and Westpac: Forrester
Save the Date — Digital Nation Live launches on October 25
Save the Date — Digital Nation Live launches on October 25
Stakes are higher for cybersecurity in Web3: Gal Tal-Hochberg, CTO at Team8
Stakes are higher for cybersecurity in Web3: Gal Tal-Hochberg, CTO at Team8
Crypto losses to crime surge to $1.9 B in first half of 2022: Chainalysis
Crypto losses to crime surge to $1.9 B in first half of 2022: Chainalysis
All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in any form without prior authorisation.
Your use of this website constitutes acceptance of nextmedia's Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions.