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- Big Moves: Visa's Massive $925M Fraud Tech Acquisition 🗞️
Big Moves: Visa's Massive $925M Fraud Tech Acquisition 🗞️
Frank McKenna
August 27, 2024
Hello All,
Who is headed to the IAFCI Conference in Vegas this week? I am 🖐️, and I will cover new and emerging auto loan fraud trends and the latest in deepfakes. What a week it’s going to be!
Let’s check out the top stories emerging right now.
Hacker Faked Own Death - A man trying to avoid paying child support hacked into the state registry and listed himself as “deceased”.
Is he broke? - A jeweler is suing Floyd Mayweather for fraud and violations of the RICO act for $4 million in luxury watches he never paid for. Included in the suit are rapper Tyga and The Money Team.
NPD Hacker Doxxed—In a leak, CrowdStrike revealed that the guy behind the notorious NPD breach is a Brazilian. He said he wanted to turn his life around and promised to turn himself in.
Biden Deepfake Fine - The Telco company that enabled the AI-created Biden Deepfake draws a $1 million fine from the FCC.
Deepfakes Grip Nation - A wave of deepfake sex crimes operating on Telegram is creating fear among Korean students who are having their pictures taken off Instagram and used in deepfake porn.
Failure to Antivirus—Georgia Tech’s Famous Cybersecurity Lab was sued for fraud by the DOD for failing to turn on antivirus software, which researchers there felt was too burdensome.
Crippled With Pain- The terrible saga with fraud fighter Tigran Gambaryan continues in Nigeria. He can now no longer walk and is confined to his cell, unable to meet with the embassy and others.
Everyone Is Talking About The Telegram Takedown 🔥
In a stunning development, Pavel Durov, the founder and CEO of Telegram, was arrested at Bourget airport near Paris and charged with a long list of crimes, including terrorism, money laundering, drug trafficking, pedophile offenses, and fraud.
He was arrested for failing to moderate content on the platform and for letting fraudsters, drug traffickers, and pedophiles freely engage in crime on it.
“Enough of Telegram’s Impunity, " said one French Investigator. But the arrest has created a firestorm of controversy pitting freedom lovers who want freedom of speech against crime fighters who say, “This has to stop!”
People Are Getting Scammed With New “PIN Retry” Scheme
A new tricky scam targets restaurant goers, fooling them into divulging their PINs and charging thousands of dollars for small-ticket items.
It’s gaining popularity in restaurants, airports, and tourist locations, where people are paying thousands of dollars for low-ticket items—all because sneaky cashiers and waiters are in on the con.
Heartland Heartache - Hammer Drops On Bank CEO That Destroyed A Bank
In the small, tight-knit farming community of Elkhart, Kansas, a town of only 1,800 residents, a $46 million Pig Butchering fraud scandal was devastating. This week, Shan Hanes was sentenced to 24 years for his crimes, even as he pleaded that he lost over $1 million of his own money to scammers.
Court documents released this week provide an even clearer picture of how it all went down in a city still reeling from the heartache.
Visa - The $925 Million Takeover of Fraud Platform Featurespace
A rumor that Visa could acquire Featurespace in a whopper of a deal valued at close to $925 million percolated throughout the internet this last weekend.
Estimates of its potential value varied, but one insider said it could be worth more than £700m (USD 925M), while another said it could ultimately be worth less. If anyone has ever met founder Dave Excell, you can’t help but be happy for one of the nicest fraud fighters on the planet.
Sources cautioned, however, that a deal had yet to be formally agreed and could still fall apart! Congrats to our friends at Featurespace, who are set to do well if this sale goes through
These Creepy Masks Are So Ultra Realistic, It’s Scary
Do you need to be incognito during a bank robbery, scam, or identity theft fraud scheme? One company might have just the thing to make it easy.
It’s called MaskonMoney, and its masks are so realistic that they scare me. The masks, which appear to be manufactured internationally, are touted as “legal” and sold for about $250.
Bank Employee Worked With “Heads” and “Pros” In Joint Account Fraud Scheme
She was paid $1,000 for every joint account she opened fraudulently at the Chase Branch where she worked in Charlotte. For the scheme, she worked with a “Pro” who would pose as the actual customer using a fake driver’s license and a collusive mule called a “head” who would use their real identity to get placed as a joint account holder.
All in, they stole $120,000, but she faces years in prison.
Cupcake Scam Ain’t No Cakewalk For Bakery
Bakery owner Loria Stern was delighted when she received an order for 84 dozen cupcakes for a large event. The email was impeccable, so she didn’t question it. Soon after, she received a check for $7,650 because the girl named Zoe Madison said she didn’t have a card.
Right before the order was delivered, the scammer called back and wanted to cut the order in half and get a refund.
This is a well-known scam, and I was even targeted. I don’t even have a bakery. You can read my conversation with a cupcake scammer here.
Congratulations! You're Getting Arrested 😆
This KIA Dealership went through the whole sales process knowing that the man was using a stolen ID but they played along with it to make sure justice was served.
As captured in a the-viral TikTok below, the man is congratulated and applauded as a new Kia owner. But things take a quick turn as police arrive. “Wait a minute, what’s going on here?” he can be heard saying as he’s being handcuffed.
@taylorashlanbender #justiceisserved
Cart4U Bot Has Makes Fraudulent Orders a Snap 🫰
Want front-row seats at the next Taylor Swift concert but short on cash? Maybe you want to check out that blockbuster movie, but you’re short on dough. Or perhaps you want to splurge on Doordash, but you're feeling cheap.
Well, there is a new fraud ordering service called Cart4U, which has wholly automated fraud by using a sophisticated BOT right within Telegram. You pick out the tickets, the food, or the ride you want, then paste the cart into the order screen, make a small payment, and voila, you're off to the races.
I’ve never seen a fraud for service as easy to use as this one. And that’s bad news for online merchants dealing with even more first-party fraud. The service appears to have launched in August and is a form of Buy4U, which has been around for several years - this just takes it to the next level!
Hotel Scamarona. A Pig Butchering Hotel With A Nice View
These pig butchering ops are springing up everywhere!
Over 100 Chinese scammers camped out in the dingy SeaView hotel in Isle of Man and carried out a scam operation that allegedly stole millions. One staff worker became suspicious when he could hear the group cheering loudly each time they successfully scammed somebody.
The hotel boast a nice view of the sea, but the rooms? That’s another matter.
Elon Musk’s Own AI System Creates DeepFake of Him Committing Armed Robbery
Yikes, Elon Musk’s AI System, Grok, was used to create a viral deepfake video of him committing armed robbery. The video was created by the Dor Brothers, who wanted to show Elon that AI must have guardrails.
Click To See 👇️
The Hustle 🔫🔥
Somebody said uncensored? Thank you @grok for letting us all have some fun 🙌💯
Note: We don't hold any political stance, just having some fun 😊 @elonmusk
#GROK#GROK2#grokimages#Grok2images
— The Dor Brothers (@thedorbrothers)
5:45 PM • Aug 21, 2024
Welcome To Fakesville - Inside an AI Nightmare
The Information goes deep into the racist audio that went viral at Pikesville High School earlier this year, showing the enormous damage a digital fake can wreak—and how easy it is to make one.
Even more unsettling? Similar events could happen anywhere, and they almost certainly will. (Subscription Require)
Live Event - AI Deepfakes and The Fraud Tsunami
Join Aarti Samani and me for a conversation on CyberCrimes' New Attack Wave. We will unravel the sophisticated threats facing businesses and individuals today—from the explosion of digital dopplegangers to the terrifying rise of deepfake technology in fraud schemes. It's on September 9th at 8 a.m. PST; I hope you can make it!
That’s a wrap on this week's newsletter. If you're headed out, I hope to see you in Vegas. Until then, Happy Fraud Hunting!