A cybercrime involving a wire transfer of a sizable sum of money, around US$ 2.5 million, was directed at the International Cricket Council. The alleged scam took place in 2022 and was started in the US, though the exact amount involved has not been confirmed.
The scam was carried out by fraudsters using business email compromise (BEC), also referred to as e-mail account compromise. BEC is “one of the most financially devastating cyber crimes,” according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Law enforcement in the US has been alerted to the potential fraud and an investigation is ongoing, cricket’s governing body is remaining quiet about the situation. The event was reported to the ICC Board last year.
It is unclear how the scammers were able to withdraw money from the ICC account, including if they had direct contact with a representative at the Dubai headquarters or decided to pick on an ICC vendor or consultant instead. Furthermore, it’s not apparent if the transaction involved a single wire transfer or several.
A BEC scam is a form of phishing in which individuals and organisations are convinced to send wire transfers. According to a Congressional Report, the FBI sent to the US government in November of last year, BEC-related claims to its Internet Crime Control Center in 2021 will exceed $2.4 billion.
The BEC scam is quickly changing as its perpetrators grow more “talented,” according to FBI studies. The theft of payroll funds, the targeting of the real estate industry, the impersonation of vendor emails, lawyer spoofing, the impersonation of lawyer email accounts, and fraudulent requests for sizable amounts of gift cards are all examples of how the scam has developed from phoney emails purporting to be from chief executive officers requesting wire transfers to fictitious locations.
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