The email that promised an iPhone by Remmy Nweke - WeekendDigits@ITREALMS

What begins as an email promising a free iPhone unfolds into a compelling exploration of phishing, identity theft and social engineering. In this edition of WeekendDigits@ITREALMS, REMMY NWEKE reveals, through the experience of a Lagos professional, how cybercriminals exploit human trust, not technology, to deceive unsuspecting internet users in today's digital world.

Friday mornings in Lagos often carry a quiet sense of relief.

After another exhausting week of battling traffic, deadlines and the relentless rhythm of city life, many professionals begin the day with familiar routines. For Gozie, let's call him that to protect his identity, the ritual rarely changed. He brushed his teeth, took his bath, grabbed a quick breakfast and, before stepping out for work, reached for his phone to check his email.

Most mornings were predictable.

There would be newsletters he never remembered subscribing to, office correspondence waiting for attention, promotional offers from online stores and the occasional message from family or friends.

Hushpuppi saga and Business Email scam - ITREALMS

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Trending Hushpuppi:

The Hushpuppi Saga is a trending story that many people have shared severally on different social media platforms around the world. It had also generated a lot of controversies. However, we need to ask ourselves a very important question about this trending story.

Why is it that so many victims fell for the scam?

The answer is simply because the defrauded victims had little or no knowledge about "Business Email Compromise Scam" which was the strategy used by Raymond Abbas aka "Hushpuppi".

What is Business Email Compromise?
Business Email Compromise (BEC) is a kind of fraud in which cyber criminals hack into a corporate email account and impersonate the real owner of the email account in order to lure the company, its employees, partners or customers into transferring money or sensitive information to the cyber criminals or divert their payments to another account created by the cyber criminals.

How it works:

The cyber criminals will do a thorough research about the unsuspecting companies through their profiles, websites, social media posts, YouTube channels, journals, press release etc.

Alternatively, they will create an email address that is very similar to that of the unsuspecting companies' email address. In some cases they will disguise as the director, partner, lawyer or customer of the targeted companies and use their identities to obtain personal or sensitive information through email.

Research revealed that Business Email Compromise Fraud had already cost the United States Businesses at least $1.6 billion in losses from 2013 till date.

A typical example of a Business Email Compromise (BEC) was recently reported in the news and has gone viral on social media with thousands of views within few days of the report. In the report, a 38-year-old Nigerian, Raymond Abbas aka Hushpuppi was arrested along with 11 others by the Dubai Police. 

They were accused of being involved in a "Business Email Compromise" and other forms of internet fraud in which 1,926,400 victims were said to have been targeted by the syndicate.

The major reason why so many unsuspecting individuals and companies fall victim to Business Email Compromise Fraud almost every day is because they lack vital information about it.

How can you protect yourself or your company against Business Email Compromise (BEC) Scams?

You must educate yourself about the warning signs and other safety tips.

Warning Signs of a Business Email Compromise Fraud:
1. It comes with a sense of urgency. e.g. urgent payment, urgent response, urgent subject matter etc. The fraudsters want their victims to respond quickly before they can think clearly.

2. Sudden change in email address. e.g. When you notice a sudden change in the email address of the CEO, customer, lawyer or staff of the company you are dealing with, be suspicious.

3. Sudden change in website: When you notice a change in the website of any company before, during or after a transaction, you should be suspicious.

4. Sudden change in contact telephone number.

5. Sudden change in bank account details.

6. Introduction of third party email into the business transaction.

How to avoid Business Email Compromise Fraud:

1. Individuals and companies should educate themselves on how to avoid Business Email Compromise Scam.

2. When a change in email address, phone number, bank account details, website etc is noticed, report immediately to your bank or anti-fraud agencies.

3. Always use firewall, antivirus and other tools to scan your computers, mobile phones and other devices to prevent malware infections.

4. Before you provide any sensitive, personal or company's information on any website, make sure you verify the authenticity of the website.

5. If you receive an email that notifies you of a change in the mode of payment or a change of bank account details, make sure you investigate thoroughly by contacting the supposed receiver of the payment via another channel. e.g. phone calls, courier services etc.

6. If you are a victim of Business Email Compromise Scam, report immediately to appropriate authorities for urgent action. e.g. your bank, police or anti-crime organisations.


*Contributed by Rotimi Onadipe, +234-8169121819; email: onatechconsult@gmail.com

Dangote gets hotline, email for monitoring, reporting unscrupulous truck drivers

ITRealms:

The management of Dangote Industries Limited has set up hotlines and electronic mail (email) for the public to call in and report truck drivers, for recklessness and illegal haulage of contraband goods with a promise to appropriately compensate whistleblowers that lead to arrest of errant drivers, reports ITRealms.

A press statement available to ITRealms, Dangote management, noted that the trucks belonging to Dangote Cement are only allowed to carry cement, high grade gypsum and coal, those belonging to Dangote Sugar (NASCON) are authorized to carry only salt and Dan Q seasoning.

Also, the company disclosed that trucks belonging to Agro Sacks, the bags producing arm of Dangote Group, can only carry bags, belonging to Dangote flour Mills, Wheat, Flour and Danvita.

“The Management of Dangote Industries Limited hereby alerts the public to report any suspected Dangote truck driver involved in illegal haulage. Please call Dangote Industries Management hotline on all information regarding illegal haulage activities on 08070188000, 01-2123567, 08170023846, 08152093133 and or email us at CustomerCare@Dangote.com”.

Dangote Management also issued a stern warning to those illegally transporting unauthorized goods through its trucks. “Dangote Industries Limited also wishes to warn those that illegally transport materials on Dangote trucks that such unauthorized goods, when found, shall be confiscated and such owners prosecuted to the full extent of the law”.

It would be recalled that the company recently intercepted one of the company’s truck loaded with contrabands in Ibadan, arrested the drivers and handed them over the Nigerian customs for further investigations and prosecutions.

The arrest was effected by a crack team of the Company’s security personnel led by its Chief Security Officer who acted on intelligence, bordering on misconduct by some of its drivers.

While handing over the drivers and his motorboy to the Customs Authority, Assistant General Manager, in charge of Security Services, CSP Ali Garba explained that the company has a surveillance section that monitors all his trucks and drivers’ activities.

Ayo Midele/GEE

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ICANN now requires email validation system

ITRealms:

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has introduced electronic email verification for registration on its website, reports ITRealms.

This, ICANN said is part of an ongoing process to improve the security of its web applications and this new verification process takes effect form Saturday 20 May 2017.

“The ICANN Registration website will now require that all potential meeting participants verify their email address to complete the registration process,” officials told ITRealms.

This, ICANN said added another  layer of security designed to ensure the validity of user email addresses and reduce the amount of malicious and spam email accounts currently being utilized.

Once a user has verified their email address, they will not need to re-verify for future meeting registrations, unless they update their email address or use a new one. Unverified email accounts will be unable to complete the registration process, nor will they be able to receive printed credentials at the meeting.

Users are encouraged to log into https://registration.icann.org after 20 May 2017 to receive a prompt to validate their email address. Users can then utilize the validation link sent to their email address, or they can enter the emailed confirmation code into the registration site confirmation code prompt.

ICANN explained that if users have pre-registered for upcoming meetings, and are unable to visit https://registration.icann.org before the meeting, they will be prompted on-site at the registration kiosks to validate their registration account email address.

“They can simply enter the email confirmation code at the kiosk prompt,” ICANN official said.

ITRealms gathered that registration email validation links and confirmation codes are only valid for 24 hours after they are requested.

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Internet community mourns email inventor, Ray Tomlinson's passage @74

ITRealms:

The global internet community are in mourn over the death of the inventor of electronic mail (email) and liberator of @ sign, Mr. Ray Tomlinson, who passed on at the age of 74, reports ITRealms.

The Internet pioneer, Tomlinson, was credited with the invention of email, died Saturday, in what was suspected to be heart attack.

ITRealms reports that Tomlinson, the United States (US) computer programmer came up with the idea of electronic messages that could be sent from one network to another in 1971.

The BBC.com also reports that his invention included the ground-breaking use of @ symbol in email addresses, which is now standard.

ITRealms gathered that he sent what is now reputed as the first-ever email while working in Boston as an engineer for research company Bolt, Beranek and Newman.

The firm played a big role in developing an early version of the internet, known as Arpanet.

However, Tomlinson later said he could not remember what was in that first test message, describing it as "completely forgettable" and was recognised by his peers in 2012, when he was inducted into the Internet Hall of Fame.

Pix: Tomlinson, courtesy: Historyoftelecommunications.com

 

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Internet fraudster bags 2 years for email hacking

ITRealms:

Internet fraudster, Okwuka Olisaebuka Ifeanyi, who specializes in hacking peoples electronic mail (email) with aim of committing fraud, has been jailed for two years, reports ITRealms.

Ifeanyi, ITRealms reports was on April 23, 2015 sentenced to a two-year imprisonment by Justice H.A Nganjiwa of the Federal High Court, Port Harcourt, Rivers State on a three count amended charge of forgery brought against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Ifeanyi’s journey to jail started on April 21, 2014 when he was arrested by operatives of the Commission with various forged fraudulent documents in his possession.

One of the charge reads:

“That you Okwuka Olisaebuka Ifeanyi on or about the 3rd day of March, 2013 at Port Harcourt within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, with intent to defraud, did forge a document with subject: URGENT SECURITY UPDATE purportedly issued by First bank of Nigeria Plc that it may be acted upon as genuine which you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to section 1 (2) (c) of the Miscellaneous Offences CAP M17 of the Revised Edition (Laws of the Federation of Nigeria) Act 2007 and Punishable under section 1(2) of the same Act.”

He pleaded guilty upon his arraignment on February 24, 2015.

In view of his plea, the matter was adjourned to March 5, 2015 for review of facts where the EFCC gave evidence and tendered several exhibits to prove its case.

Following the review of facts, Justice Nganjiwa found the accused guilty and sentenced him accordingly.

The convict is to forfeit his laptop and phone, which he used in the fraudulent activities, to the Federal Government.

+Remmy Nweke (ITRealms) 
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