All over the world citizens are constantly being told about the benefits of biometrics and are convinced that it is the most reliable way to protect personal data, especially for banks. As it turned out, not always.
In a New York court, a case involving the theft of $129 million from July 2024 to February 2026 began.
The massive fraud operation used AI-generated voices and images to impersonate corporate executives. The identities of lawyers at large international firms were then stolen to convince employees to approve millions of dollars in fraudulent transfers.
The plan was ideal. Accounting employees who had the authority to approve large bank transfers sent messages allegedly on behalf of the company's CEO. They described planned secret deals, often acquisitions of companies, and ordered employees to sign non-disclosure agreements.
Next came phone or video calls using AI. When the employees were convinced that it was the real CEO, an appearance of independent confirmation of the transaction was created by "lawyers" from large international companies, whose data could be verified. Their identity was also stolen.
The alleged attorney urged employees to maintain confidentiality and ordered them to transfer funds to accounts controlled by fraudsters. The stolen funds were transferred through bank accounts in the US, Europe, the Middle East and Asia, and then converted into cryptocurrencies.
Now the organizers of the program have been arrested and are preparing to be extradited to the United States. They face seven charges, including two counts of aggravated identity theft, separately relating to the alleged misuse of identifying information of executives and attorneys.
But three years of their successful activity speaks for the fact that in the new normal the principle "don't believe your eyes" becomes the key.