Employees of a company in Hong Kong were deceived into transferring money to criminals in 15 transactions, resulting in a total loss of 200 million Hong Kong dollars, approximately 900 million Thai baht.
The culprits utilized online conference links to engage with their victims, who were surprised to find multiple individuals in the virtual meeting room. Each person appeared genuine, and they all claimed to be fellow employees of the company. The imposter, posing as the CFO, justified the need for confidential transactions and requested the money transfer.
The Hong Kong police have announced this case in a press conference, highlighting the fact that the criminals often impersonate someone within the company and that employees have typically remained vigilant when confronted face-to-face. However, the perpetrators have now enhanced their tactics by assuming the identities of multiple employees, thus creating additional credibility.
The use of deepfake technology has played a significant role in further deceiving people. The United States had previously issued warnings to the private sector about the increasing prevalence of such attacks.
Source: RTHK
Image from Getty Images
TLDR: Employees of a Hong Kong company were tricked into transferring a large sum of money to criminals through online meetings. The culprits impersonated fellow employees, and even the CFO, to gain the victims’ trust. This incident highlights the growing threat of deepfake technology in fraud cases. The United States had previously warned about the rise of such attacks.
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