Sophisticated attack scenarios
To provide insight on the specialist cybersecurity solutions available to HNWIs, Barclays Private Bank has partnered with XCyber, a specialist intelligence company with state-grade cybersecurity expertise.
XCyber Director, Peter Moreman explains that the above example of cyber fraud is increasingly being used to infiltrate mailboxes. He cautions, “These attacks not only perpetrate fraud on the victim, but also form a platform from which to expand the attack using the victim’s network of contacts. Such attacks generally appear to be authentic and trustworthy by referencing known contacts or business entities and replicate well-known and well-used portals such as Outlook, Gmail and Dropbox, etc.”
The sophistication of these scams highlights the fact that when targeting HNWIs, attackers are prepared to be patient, do their homework and will go to extreme lengths to achieve their fraudulent aims.
So who are the cyber criminals and how do they operate?
Hackers are a surprisingly diverse group ranging from foreign governments seeking classified information to middle-aged mothers making ends meet and people in developing countries seeking to escape poverty. Hacking is their business and the scams they perpetrate can involve a lot of planning and research.