Category Archives: Target: Small Businesses

Posts in this category will include new stories similar to those told in the Small Business Victims category on The Washington Post’s Security Fix blog, which chronicled the methods organized cyber thieve are using to steal hundreds of thousands of dollars from dozens of small- to mid-sized companies around the country.

Bill Would Give Cities, Towns and Schools Same e-Banking Security Guarantees as Consumers

October 7, 2010

In response to a series of costly online banking heists perpetrated against towns, cities and school districts, Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) has introduced legislation that would extend those entities the same protections afforded to consumers who are victims of e-banking… Read More »

Hackers Steal $600,000 from Brigantine, NJ

October 4, 2010

Organized cyber thieves took roughly $600,000 from the coastal city of Brigantine, New Jersey this week after stealing the city’s online banking credentials. The break-in marks the second time this year that hackers have robbed the coffers of an Atlantic County town: In March, a similar attack struck Egg Harbor Township, N.J., which lost $100,000 in a similar intrusion.

Ukraine Detains 5 Individuals Tied to $70 Million in U.S. eBanking Heists

October 2, 2010

Authorities in Ukraine this week detained five individuals believed to be the masterminds behind sophisticated cyber thefts that stole $70 million – out of an attempted $220 million — from hundreds of U.S.-based small to mid-sized businesses over the last several years, the FBI said Friday.

11 Charged In ZeuS & Money Mule Ring

September 30, 2010

Authorities in the United Kingdom on Wednesday charged 11 individuals with running an international cyber crime syndicate that laundered millions of dollars stolen from consumers and businesses with the help of the help of the ultra-sophisticated ZeuS banking Trojan.

Texas Firm Blames Bank for $50,000 Cyber Heist

August 2, 2010

A business telephone equipment company in Texas is trying to force its bank into a settlement over an attack by organized cyber thieves last year that cost the company $50,000.

Attorneys for Dallas-based Hi-Line Supply Inc. recently convinced a state court to require depositions from officials at Community Bank, Inc. of Rockwall, Texas, to learn more about what the bank knew in the days and hours surrounding Aug. 20, 2009, when crooks broke into the company’s online bank accounts and transferred roughly $50,000 to four individuals across the country who had no prior business with Hi-Line.

The Case for Cybersecurity Insurance, Part II

July 14, 2010

When cyber crooks stole nearly $35,000 this year from Brookeland Fresh Water Supply District in East Texas, the theft nearly drained the utility’s financial reserves. Fortunately for the 1,300 homes and businesses it serves, Brookeland had purchased cyber security insurance, and now appears on track to recoup all of the unrecovered funds in exchange for a mere $500 deductible.

As this attack and a related case study I wrote about last month shows, cyber theft insurance can be a reasonable and effective investment in an era when ultra-sophisticated cyber thieves increasingly are defeating the security that surrounds many commercial online banking accounts.