Overview
Action Items
- Stay current on law enforcement anti-fraud initiatives, including the Financial Fraud Kill Chain.
- Understand the importance of working with law enforcement to minimize the effect of fraud when it occurs.
- Build relationships with law enforcement agencies crucial to the continued success of your organization.
At our recent Spring Cleaning event, the presenter from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) described the efforts the FBI has been taking to address financial fraud schemes that may impact banks and their customers. These schemes include corporate account takeovers and business e-mail compromise scams, in which criminals use compromised or spoofed e-mails to initiate fraudulent wire transfers. He provided suggestions for preventing these schemes including:
- educating employees about the evolving threat environment;
- establishing two-factor authentication procedures;
- creating intrusion detection system rules to flag suspicious e-mails;
- avoiding posting sensitive information on websites and social media; and
- scrutinizing urgent e-mail requests to transfer funds.
The presenter told us how the FBI can even potentially reverse certain fraudulent wire transfers through the Financial Fraud Kill Chain (FFKC) initiative, which helps victims retrieve international wire transfers involving over $50,000. For the FFKC to be effective, a SWIFT recall notice must be initiated and victims must provide to the FBI specific information about the wire transfer within 72 hours from when the transfer occurred.
Criminal schemes are constantly evolving. A strong relationship with law enforcement, along with familiarization with these schemes through education and training, will help ensure that your organization minimizes criminal conduct against you and your customers.
References
Additional information about the FFKC, and other FBI anti-fraud initiatives, can be found as follows:
- Business E-mail Compromise - FBI Chicago
- Business E-mail Compromise - FBI Chicago
We Can Help You
We interface with law enforcement agencies in various contexts, including assisting our clients with suspicious activity reporting, cybersecurity, public-private partnerships, and education. It is crucial for financial institutions to foster these relationships before they become necessary, such as after experiencing a data breach or a wire fraud. We can liaise between your organization and law enforcement agencies as a preventive matter to limit any negative consequences from criminal activity.
Please call us if you need assistance implementing anti-fraud initiatives or otherwise engaging with law enforcement.