Baker Fraud Report

Top Stories

FTC releases fraud data for 2023

• Complaint numbers up a bit; losses jump 21% to over $10 billion
• Most money lost to “investments,” meaning crypto romance fraud, at $4.6 billion; a 21% jump
• Next most complained of were government/business imposters
• Largest amount of money lost by bank to bank transfers
• Those 20-29 years old lost money in 44% of complaints; those over 70 only 25%, though older group lost larger amounts

Singapore police release 2023 fraud data; fraud up on Meta platforms, including Facebook and Instagram; job scams top the list

China-sponsored hacking group has been infiltrating US electric utilities and emergency management services

FinCEN sends alert to financial institutions warning of crypto romance “pig butchering” frauds

Pet scams are now using sponsored ads on Google to appear at the top of search results; 31% of recent complaints about pet scams identified this tactic; sites usually registered from Cameroon

International effort seizes the infrastructure of Russia-based Lockbit, one of the largest ransomware groups

Full report here

Identity Theft Assistance Center releases 2023 report, data breaches up 72% from 2022; affected 353 million individuals

FBI IC3 warns of sharp increase in tech support scams asking people to buy gold and other precious metals and send couriers to pick it up

UK reports fraud was down 13% last year, so it still the most reported type of crime; tech support and lottery fraud down

Europol: In extensive European effort police arrest 15 in major crackdown on Nigerian confraternities engaged in smuggling drugs, human trafficking and fraud

Huge amount of romance fraud enforcement this week.  As you can see below, a huge amount of great work has been done recently.  Why? Possibly it will promote education efforts around Valentine’s Day. But whatever the reason, these are welcome efforts.

full report here

Robocall deepfake of Joe Biden urges New Hampshire public not to vote in the Republican primary

Full report here

National Consumers’s League: Ten Resolutions on Fraud for this year

Technology used by scammers.  We all know that they can Spoof caller IDs, make fake web pages and passports, fake videos, and use ChatGPT and AI to aid their scams.  Here is a 30 minute presentation by Wayne May from Scamsurvivors explaining where scammers get these tools and how they use them.

How Walmart’s Financial Services Became a Fraud Magnet; use of money transfers and gift card fraud at stores cost victims millions

Full report here

New Facebook scam claims people can buy unclaimed bags from O’Hare for $10  And this is happening now all over the world.

Ireland: Enforcement operation against Nigerian organized crime gang Black Axe arrests 84 for fraud and 327 for acting as money mules

Full report here

CNN: An extensive look at crypto romance frauds operated from scam compounds in Myanmar

India arrests 36 at call center phoning those in the US, pretending to be Bank of America wanting to increase security measures, and having people buy gift cards

CNN: An extensive look at crypto romance frauds operated from scam compounds in Myanmar

Full Report here

Top Stories

Europol releases report on online fraud trends (does not contain any data on scope of fraud there)

Cyber Attack in Iran hit gas supply;  shuts down 70% of the countries gas stations

Canada: British Columbia forfeits $10 million from PacNet, which processed payments for sweepstakes fraud claiming victims had won money and had to return small sums to claim

Canada: York Regional police arrest six (Chinese?) for handling gift card payments after tech support frauds; all Home Depot cards; had $3 million

New Jersey: Man gets five years prison for laundering fraud money for Black Axe gang in South Africa; handled $525,000

Two men from Toronto arrested for altering gift cards in stores

Los Angeles: Four men indicted for crypto romance frauds; got $80 million

Full report here

EFCC in Nigeria says 7 out of 10 students there are involved in cyberfraud

Apple study says 2.6 billion personal records stolen in data breaches over the last two years, ransomware up 70% this year

Sacramento, California Sherriff’s department arrests 278 in one week for gift card scams at major retailers; replace gift cards on shelves with new ones after copying the PIN and covering scratch off

Full Report here

Top Stories

UK: Victims lost £2.7 million to charity fraud last year

Santander bank in the UK estimates that four out of five car ads on Facebook Marketplace are scams; may be 10,000 ads up at any given time

Study concludes that 74% of all web traffic last year was generated by malicious bots

Europol announces recent coordinated efforts resulted in arrests of 1013 money mules worldwide

Full Report here

Inside the crypto romance industry; billions stolen; suicides of victims; call centers where people are kidnapped

Need an expert witness for consumer protection or fraud issues?  Let me know.

Fraud Studies: Here are links to the studies I’ve written for the Better Business Bureau: puppy fraud, romance fraud; BEC fraud, sweepstakes/lottery fraud,  tech support fraud, romance fraud money mules, crooked movers, government imposters, online vehicle sale scams, rental fraud, gift cards,  free trial offer frauds,  job scams,  online shopping fraud,  fake check fraud and crypto scams

Fraud News Around the world

• Singapore: Police arrest 316 money mules and scammers in anti-fraud push
• India busts call centres phoning the US with government imposter frauds
• San Diego: Prosecutors have a major effort to tackle fraud committed by Romanian gangs; at least some of them gypsies
• San Diego: Husband and wife get prison for laundering money for unemployment fraud and jewelry heists from homes
• New York: Bulgarian  man pleads guilty to international scam that sent bills to churches; doctors offices and small businesses for Yellow Pages ads that never ran; brother also pleads; follows FTC case against them; collected money in Canada: made at least $1.24 million
• Ireland arrests nine members of Nigerian Black Axe gang; seize €1.1 million
• Cape Town police seize R100 million in counterfeit goods
• Boston: Woman pleads guilty to scheme to use stolen ID’s of those from Puerto Rico and then buy cars and arrange financing in their names
• Canada:  Scammers in Alberta dressing up in RCMP uniforms to scam people in person
• Auto glass repair people roam parking lots in Florida; offer to fix cracked windshields; send huge bills to insurance companies; car insurance premiums skyrocket; only in Florida
• Los Angeles: Man gets eight years prison for SIM swapping, taking over social media accounts, impersonating Apple support; ordered to pay $1.2 million resitution
• Over 2 billion robocalls in the US last month
• New study finds 70% of people have been deceived into buying counterfeit goods in the last year; mainly online, and most on social media; younger people more likely to be victims
• Tampa: Man from India sentenced to more than four years prison for laundering victim money from scammers in India impersonating Social Security, FBI, and IRS
• South Carolina: Two men get one year prison each for sales of counterfeit goods such as team sports jerseys

Humor

• Rolling Stones announce tour next year that will be sponsored by AARP

FTC and CFPB

• FTC returns $3 million to businesses that paid for memberships in HomeAdvisers that were deceptively advertised
• CFPB resolves case with Bank of America over not collecting demographic data for mortgage applicants; to pay $12 million

Artificial Intelligence and deep fake fraud

Virus Benefit Theft

• San Diego: Romanian  man gets 40 months prison for his role in unemployment fraud case; got $5 million; part of a group of 200 people in scheme

Social media

• Hong Kong travel agents ask police help as wave of social media accounts impersonating them collect money – and just steal it

Kidnapping and forced to scam

• 127 Malaysians rescued from scam centers in Myanmar

Business Email compromise fraud

IRS and tax fraud

Ransomware and data breaches

• Hits largest real estate title company in the US; affects closings
• Attack on service provider CTS, which provides support for UK law firms
• Hits town of Nassau Bay, Texas
• Attack on French government unit that runs internationals schools
• Hits Vanderbilt University medical center in Nashville
• Attack on large US auto part retailer AutoZone; lose data on 185,000
• Hits Toronto Public library; systems to be down until the end of the year
• Attack on Egyptian fintech company Fawry
• Gang claims attack on Crystal Lake Health Center in Michigan
• Closes emergency rooms in two New Jersey hospitals
• European law enforcement bust ransomware operation in Ukraine; 4 arrested, 30 searches conducted

Bitcoin and cryptocurrency

• Heco hack results in losses of $87 million
• Mastercard teams with AI company to fight digital money laundering and fraud
• Nigeria: Politician arrested for theft from crypto wallet
• Hong Kong citizens lose $15 million to crypto scam

ATM Skimming

• Springfield, Missouri: Two arrested for ATM skimming

Jamaica and Lottery Fraud

• Pennsylvania: Three Jamaicans convicted by jury of lottery fraud; pretended to be Publisher’s Clearinghouse

Romance Fraud and Sextortion

• Nigeria: Man gets a year prison for romance fraud; pretended to be white woman from the US
• Ireland arrests man for romance fraud
• Nigeria arrests three men for romance fraud
• Romance scam complaints drop in Australia
• India arrests man for romance fraud; used Facebook to contact victims
• Two women in the UK who are romance fraud victims set up operation to offer victim support services
• Tennessee: Two Nigerians arrested for romance scam; victim committed suicide