{"id":2043,"date":"2022-06-23T13:18:00","date_gmt":"2022-06-23T07:48:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.kdmarc.com\/blog\/?p=2043"},"modified":"2026-04-21T12:42:41","modified_gmt":"2026-04-21T07:12:41","slug":"bec-attacks-examples","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/bec-attacks-examples\/","title":{"rendered":"Top Real-life Examples of BEC Attacks"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400; color: #000000;\">Nowadays, BEC attacks are considered the most dangerous cyber threat for organizations and the most lucrative attack vector for cybercriminals. The average <\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\">loss due to a BEC attack<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> reached a <\/span><b>whopping $80,000 in 2020<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Many organizations worldwide are worried about the rising threat of BEC attacks. These attacks not only cause financial losses but also incur reputational damage to the targeted individuals or organizations.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p><div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 ez-toc-wrap-center counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-light-blue ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #414141;color:#414141\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #414141;color:#414141\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/bec-attacks-examples\/#What_is_a_BEC_Attack\" >What is a BEC Attack?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/bec-attacks-examples\/#Examples_of_BEC_Attacks\" >Examples of BEC Attacks<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/bec-attacks-examples\/#Tech_Giants_Google_and_Facebook\" >Tech Giants Google and Facebook<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/bec-attacks-examples\/#Puerto_Rico_Government\" >Puerto Rico Government<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/bec-attacks-examples\/#Vendor_Fraud_on_IT_Company_Ubiquiti\" >Vendor Fraud on IT Company, Ubiquiti<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/bec-attacks-examples\/#Obinwanne_Okeke_Sentenced_to_10_Year_Prison\" >Obinwanne Okeke Sentenced to 10 Year Prison<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/bec-attacks-examples\/#Scouler_Co_Under_BEC_Attack\" >Scouler Co. Under BEC Attack<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/bec-attacks-examples\/#Book_a_Free_Demo_Call_with_Our_People_Security_Expert\" >Book a Free Demo Call with Our People Security Expert<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-4' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-4'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-9\" href=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/bec-attacks-examples\/#Enter_your_details\" >Enter your details<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-10\" href=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/bec-attacks-examples\/#Toyota_Boshoku_Corporation\" >Toyota Boshoku Corporation<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-11\" href=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/bec-attacks-examples\/#French_Film_Production_Pathe\" >French Film Production Path\u00e9<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-12\" href=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/bec-attacks-examples\/#Wire_and_Cable_Manufacturing_Leoni_AG\" >Wire and Cable Manufacturing Leoni AG<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-13\" href=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/bec-attacks-examples\/#Types_of_Business_Email_Compromise\" >Types of Business Email Compromise<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-14\" href=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/bec-attacks-examples\/#False_Invoice_Scam\" >False Invoice Scam<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-15\" href=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/bec-attacks-examples\/#CEO_Frauds\" >CEO Frauds<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-16\" href=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/bec-attacks-examples\/#Account_Compromise\" >Account Compromise<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-17\" href=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/bec-attacks-examples\/#Attorney_Impersonation\" >Attorney Impersonation<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-18\" href=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/bec-attacks-examples\/#Data_Theft\" >Data Theft<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-19\" href=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/bec-attacks-examples\/#Conclusion\" >Conclusion<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">According to IC3 of the FBI, the total amount of <\/span><\/i><b><i>losses incurred due to BEC attacks is $1.8 billion!<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400; color: #000000;\">In this blog, we will explore some infamous and devastating examples of BEC attacks that rocked the world. But first, let\u2019s start with the basics.<\/span><\/p>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\">\n      @media print, screen and (max-width: 63.99875em){\n      .tnp-submit\n      width: 48%;\n      }\n      .wp-block-tnp-minimal{\n      padding: 20px;\n      }\n      .blog_para\n      margin-top: 4px !important;\n      line-height: 25px !important;\n      font-size: 15px !important;\n      }\n\n      }\n      .blog_para{\n      font-family: jost,sans-serif;\n      margin-top: 14px;\n      margin-bottom: 30px;\n      color: #fff;\n      font-size: 15px !important;\n      color: black !important;\n\n      }\n\n      .wp-block-tnp-minimal{\n      padding:20px;\n      border: 1px solid grey;\n      }\n\n      .tnp-submit a{\n        background: #1d58c7!important;\n    border-radius: 5px!important;\n    text-transform: inherit!important;\n    padding: 8px 25px!important;\n    font-weight: 600!important;\n    color: #fff!important;\n    width: 30%!important;\n    border: none;\n      }\n\n      .blog_get{\n      font-size: 24px !important;\n      font-weight: 700;\n      padding-bottom: 0px;\n    font-family: 'Poppins' !important;\n      margin-bottom: 0px;\n      margin-top: 0px;\n      margin-bottom: 0px !important;\n      color: white;\n          line-height: 30px;\n          color: white;\n      }\n      .row{\n             display: flex;\n    flex-wrap: wrap;\n    flex-direction: row;\n    padding: 25px 0px 25px 36px;\n    align-items: center;\n\n      }\n\n.colLeft{\n         flex-basis:50%;\n    -webkit-box-flex: 0;\n    flex-grow: 0;\n    max-width: 50%;\n    color: white;\n}\n    \n .colRight{\n       flex-basis: 45%;\n    -webkit-box-flex: 0;\n    flex-grow: 0;\n    max-width: 50%;\n }\n\n.tnp-subscription-minimal{\n    float: right;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div style=\"max-width: 741px; margin: 0 auto; background-image: url('https:\/\/awareness.threatcop.ai\/marketing\/linkedinlowerbanner.webp'); background-repeat: no-repeat; background-size: cover; background-position: center; \">\n<div class=\"row\">\n<div class=\"colLeft\">\n<p class=\"blog_get\" style=\"font-family: 'Poppins' !important; color: white !important\">Subscribe to Our Newsletter On Linkedin<\/p>\n<p class=\"blog_para\" style=\"font-size: 16px;font-family: 'Poppins' !important; color: white !important; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 28px;line-height: 25px;\">Sign up to Stay Tuned with the Latest Cyber Security News and Updates<\/p>\n\n<div>\n<div class=\"tnp\" style=\"margin-bottom: 10px;\">\n            <form action=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/newsletter-thank-you\" method=\"get\" target=\"_blank\">\n<div class=\"tnp-submit\">\n                  <a class=\"libutton\" href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/build-relation\/newsletter-follow?entityUrn=7062043746430783488\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Subscribe<\/a><\/div>\n<\/form><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"colRight\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"tnp tnp-subscription-minimal \">\n            <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/awareness.threatcop.ai\/marketing\/newsletter-icon.webp\" class=\"img-fluid\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_is_a_BEC_Attack\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>What is a BEC Attack?<\/b><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400; color: #000000;\">Business email compromise or BEC is a kind of attack that is based on the concepts of spoofing, impersonation, and spear-phishing. Cybercriminals conduct extensive research on the targeted individual and create forged emails. These fake emails are meant to trick the targeted individual into making financial transactions or making fake payments, usually from the company\u2019s account.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image wp-image-10067 size-full\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"860\" height=\"520\" src=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/Cyber-Ed.jpg\" alt=\"Real-life example of a BEC attack\" class=\"wp-image-10067\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">(Source: Cyber Ed)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Examples_of_BEC_Attacks\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>Examples of BEC Attacks<\/b><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400; color: #000000;\">There have been notable <span style=\"color: #183994;\"><a style=\"color: #183994;\" href=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/bec-attack\/\"><strong>BEC attacks<\/strong><\/a><\/span> across the world in the past few years. Some of the most popular and devastating attacks are listed below.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Tech_Giants_Google_and_Facebook\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>Tech Giants Google and Facebook<\/b><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">From 2013 to 2015, Evaldas Rimasauskas carried out a series of BEC scams, leading him to a 5-year sentence in federal prison. This guy <\/span><b>set up a fake company impersonating a Taiwanese hardware supplier Quanta Computer<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.&nbsp;<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400; color: #000000;\">They presented genuine-looking invoices to <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/03\/25\/business\/facebook-google-wire-fraud.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\"><b><span style=\"color: #183994;\">Google and Facebook<\/span><\/b><\/a><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which they duly paid into Rimasauskas-controlled bank accounts. Apart from fake invoices, the threat actor prepared counterfeit lawyer contracts and letters to make sure that banks accepted the fraudulent transfer.<\/span><b> Both tech giants lost $121 million to this scam!<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image wp-image-10068 size-full\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"430\" src=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/Tripwire.jpeg\" alt=\"Examples of BEC Attack \" class=\"wp-image-10068\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">(Source: Tripwire)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Puerto_Rico_Government\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>Puerto Rico Government<\/b><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400; color: #000000;\">In early 2020, the government of Puerto Rico was still recovering from a 6.4 magnitude earthquake when they found that they had <\/span><span style=\"color: #183994;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pymnts.com\/news\/security-and-risk\/2020\/pr-govt-loses-2-6m-due-to-email-phishing\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\"><b>fallen victim to a BEC scam<\/b><\/a><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. The <\/span><b>victim was the director of Puerto Rico\u2019s Industrial Development Company, Ruben Rivera<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, who<\/span><b> mistakenly made the transaction of $2.6 million to a fake bank account.<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This transfer was made after receiving an email requesting a change in the banking account associated with remittance payments. This <\/span><b>email came from a compromised account of an employee of the Puerto Rico<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Employment Retirement System. Notably, <\/span><b>three employees were suspended, and public pension funds were frozen by the FBI.<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> The director of the company confirmed that none of the pension accounts were affected by the scam.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Vendor_Fraud_on_IT_Company_Ubiquiti\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>Vendor Fraud on IT Company, Ubiquiti<\/b><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In August of 2015, Ubiquiti Networks Inc., the San Jose-based manufacturer of high-performance networking technologies, fell victim to a devastating<\/span><b> BEC attack that led to a loss of $ 46.7 million<\/b><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">. As soon as the company became aware of the breach, it contacted its financial institutions and law enforcement agencies. Fortunately, Ubiquiti managed to recover some of the loss amounts with the cooperation of law enforcement agencies. This scam is also regarded as<\/span> \u2018<\/span><span style=\"color: #183994;\"><b>Vendor Email Compromise (VEC)<\/b><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"color: #183994;\">\u2019<\/span>.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The <\/span><b>threat actors impersonated an employee of some third-party company and sent fake emails to the financial department of Ubiquiti<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> asking to make fraudulent transactions. An employee at one of the company\u2019s subsidiaries based in Hong Kong was tricked by the hackers into transferring a huge sum into bank accounts controlled by the threat actors. Previously, VEC attacks were launched by domain or <span style=\"color: #183994;\"><a style=\"color: #183994;\" href=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/a-brief-introduction-of-email-spoofing\/\"><strong>email spoofing<\/strong><\/a><\/span>, but now sophisticated account takeover methods are used.&nbsp;<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Obinwanne_Okeke_Sentenced_to_10_Year_Prison\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>Obinwanne Okeke Sentenced to 10 Year Prison<\/b><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Obinwanne Okeke is a celebrated entrepreneur who was <\/span><b>sentenced to 10 years in prison<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> because he was <\/span><\/span><span style=\"color: #183994;\"><b>convicted of involvement in a BEC scam<\/b><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. This scam took place in February 2021, <\/span><b>resulting in a financial loss of $11 million for victims. <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Okeke was not only convicted of BEC fraud but also of creating fraudulent web pages to manipulate victims. The fake transfers were directly transferred to overseas shell companies.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image wp-image-10070 size-full\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"976\" height=\"549\" src=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/BBC.jpg\" alt=\"Convicted for involvement in BEC Attacks\" class=\"wp-image-10070\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">(Source: BBC)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Scouler_Co_Under_BEC_Attack\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>Scouler Co. Under BEC Attack<\/b><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400; color: #000000;\">In June 2014, an employee of Scouler Co. company in Nebraska named Keith McMurty received an <\/span><span style=\"color: #183994;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.csoonline.com\/article\/2884339\/omahas-scoular-co-loses-17-million-after-spearphishing-attack.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\"><b>impersonated email from a boss<\/b><\/a><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. This means that <\/span><b>threat actors impersonated the CEO of the company, Chuck Elsea. <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The email notified Keith to acquire a Chinese company.&nbsp;<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the same series of fake emails, he was further notified to contact a lawyer from KPMG, who would assist in the acquisition. <\/span><b>McMurty followed all the instructions and commands from the CEO and transferred $17.2 million to a Shanghai bank account.<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> During all this communication, every email from the CEO was faked and impersonated.&nbsp;<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<!DOCTYPE html>\r\n<html lang=\"en\">\r\n\r\n<head>\r\n    <meta charset=\"UTF-8\">\r\n    <meta http-equiv=\"X-UA-Compatible\" content=\"IE=edge\">\r\n    <meta name=\"viewport\" content=\"width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0\">\r\n    <title>Document<\/title>\r\n<\/head>\r\n\r\n<style>\r\n    .interestedBtn {\r\n        width: 80% !important;\r\n        box-sizing: border-box !important;\r\n        display: inline-block !important;\r\n        padding: 11px !important;\r\n        border: 1px !important;\r\n        border-color: #ddd !important;\r\n        margin-top: 10px !important;\r\n        background-color: #183e8b !important;\r\n        background-image: none !important;\r\n        text-shadow: none !important;\r\n        color: #fff !important;\r\n        font-size: 14px !important;\r\n        line-height: 20px !important;\r\n        border-radius: 5px !important;\r\n        margin: 0 !important;\r\n        cursor: pointer !important;\r\n        box-shadow: 0px 4.66px 22.99px 0px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.10);;\r\n    }\r\n\r\n\r\n        .formSec .formSecTwo{\r\n            padding-top: 15px !important;\r\n            margin-bottom: 30px !important;\r\n        }\r\n\r\n\r\n    .tnp-email {\r\n        width: 80% !important;\r\n        box-sizing: border-box;\r\n        padding: 8px 10px;\r\n        display: inline-block;\r\n        border: 1px solid #ced4da;\r\n        background: #fff;\r\n        color: #000 !important;\r\n        font-size: 13px;\r\n        line-height: 20px;\r\n        border-radius: 2px;\r\n        padding-right: 30px;\r\n        margin-bottom: 0px;\r\n    }\r\n\r\n    .formSec {\r\n        border: 1px solid #ced4da;\r\n        float: left !important;\r\n        width: 55% !important;\r\n    }\r\n\r\n    .mainBox {\r\n       \/* border: 1px solid #183e8b;*\/\r\n         background: white;\r\n        max-width: 600px !important;\r\n        margin: 0 auto !important;\r\n        padding: 20px !important;\r\n        font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif !important;\r\n    }\r\n\r\n    .boxDiv {\r\n        display: flex !important;\r\n    }\r\n\r\n    .boxConsult {\r\n        float: left !important;\r\n        width: 45% !important;\r\n        padding: 10px !important;\r\n    }\r\n\r\n    .formSecTwo {\r\n        text-align:center !important;\r\n        width: 100% !important;\r\n    }\r\n\r\n    .formHeading {\r\n        font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;\r\n        margin-top: 0px;\r\n        font-weight: 700;\r\n        line-height: 25px;\r\n        font-size: 18px !important;\r\n        \r\n       margin-bottom: 60px !important;\r\n       color: #000!important;\r\n          margin-top: 5px !important;\r\n    }\r\n\r\n    .fieldHeading {\r\n        margin: 0 !important;\r\n        font-size: 13px !important;\r\n        text-align: left !important;\r\n        margin: 0px 39px 2px 93px !important;\r\n        font-weight: 500 !important;\r\n    }\r\n\r\n    .image {\r\n        max-width:90% !important;\r\n        height: auto !important;\r\n    }\r\n\r\n     .email-icon {\r\n            position: absolute;\r\n            right: 50px;\r\n             top: 20px;\r\n            transform: translateY(-50%);\r\n            pointer-events: none; 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font-size: 16px !important;\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Enter_your_details\"><\/span>Enter your details<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h4>\r\n                    <div class=\"tnp tnp-subscription-minimal\">\r\n                        <form action=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/thankyou-blog\" method=\"get\" target=\"_blank\">\r\n                            <div class=\"email-container\" style=\"margin-bottom:20px;\">\r\n\r\n                                <input class=\"tnp-email\" type=\"text\" required=\"\" name=\"FullName\" value=\"\"\r\n                                    placeholder=\"Full Name\">\r\n                                    <span class=\"email-icon\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/awareness.threatcop.ai\/threatcop_blog\/icon01.svg\" class=\"img-fluid\" \/><\/span>\r\n                            <\/div>\r\n\r\n                            <div class=\"email-container\" style=\"margin-bottom:20px;\">\r\n                               \r\n                                <input class=\"tnp-email\" type=\"email\" required=\"\" name=\"email\" value=\"\"\r\n                                    placeholder=\"Corporate Email Id\">\r\n                                     <span class=\"email-icon\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/awareness.threatcop.ai\/threatcop_blog\/icon02.svg\" class=\"img-fluid\" \/><\/span>\r\n                            <\/div>\r\n\r\n                            <div class=\"email-container\" style=\"margin-bottom:20px;\">\r\n                               \r\n                                <input class=\"tnp-email\" type=\"text\" required=\"\" name=\"CompanyName\" value=\"\"\r\n                                    placeholder=\"Company Name\">\r\n                                    <span class=\"email-icon\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/awareness.threatcop.ai\/threatcop_blog\/icon03.svg\" class=\"img-fluid\" \/><\/span>\r\n\r\n                            <\/div>\r\n\r\n                            <div class=\"email-container\">\r\n                               \r\n                                <input class=\"tnp-email\" type=\"number\" required=\"\" name=\"Phone\" value=\"\"\r\n                                    placeholder=\"Phone No.\"><br>\r\n                                    <span class=\"email-icon\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/awareness.threatcop.ai\/threatcop_blog\/icon04.svg\" class=\"img-fluid\" \/><\/span>\r\n                            <\/div>\r\n                            <input type=\"hidden\" name=\"BlogForm\" value=\"BlogForm\"><br>\r\n                            <input class=\"tnp-submit interestedBtn\" name=\"submit\" type=\"submit\"\r\n                                value=\"SUBMIT\">\r\n\r\n                        <\/form>\r\n                    <\/div>\r\n                <\/div>\r\n            <\/div>\r\n\r\n        <\/div>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n\r\n<\/body>\r\n\r\n<\/html>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Toyota_Boshoku_Corporation\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>Toyota Boshoku Corporation<\/b><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In 2019, a European subsidiary of the Toyota Group, <\/span><b>Toyota Boshoku Corporation, became the victim of a BEC attack that incurred a loss of $37 million.<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> The auto parts supplier was tricked into making a large fund transfer into the hackers\u2019 bank account. The threat actors posed as one of the subsidiary\u2019s business partners and sent carefully crafted emails to members of the accounting and finance departments.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400; color: #000000;\">These emails requested that the funds be sent into a specific bank account, which was controlled by the hackers. Soon after the transfer was made, the company\u2019s security experts realized that they had been duped. However, by then, it was too late to stop the transfer.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image wp-image-10071 size-full\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"710\" height=\"386\" src=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/Forbes.jpg\" alt=\"BEC Attacks Example\" class=\"wp-image-10071\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">(Source: Forbes)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"French_Film_Production_Pathe\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>French Film Production Path\u00e9<\/b><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In March 2018, a <\/span><b>European cinema chain known as Path\u00e9 suffered a financial loss of $21.5 million due to a BEC scam. <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The most surprising element is that this scam continued to occur over the course of a month without being detected. The attack began on March 8, 2018, when the <\/span><b>director of Pathe, Dertje Meijer, received a spoofed email from the CEO of Pathe.&nbsp;<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The cybercriminals stated in the email that Pathe was in the middle of acquisition discussions with a Dubai-based company. Impersonating the CEO, t<\/span><b>hey asked Dertje Meije to send a confidential payment of $931,600<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. After consulting with the seniors, Meijer made the payment. And later in the same month, <\/span><b>he made three more payments, amounting to a total of $21.5 million.<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Wire_and_Cable_Manufacturing_Leoni_AG\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>Wire and Cable Manufacturing Leoni AG<\/b><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400; color: #000000;\">In 2016, a leading wire and cable manufacturer,<\/span> <span style=\"color: #183994;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tripwire.com\/state-of-security\/security-data-protection\/44-million-email-scam\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\"><b>Leoni AG, was scammed<\/b><\/a><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b> out of $44 million by another one of the top BEC attacks of all times<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Cybercriminals impersonated the company\u2019s senior German executive to send emails to an employee working in the finance department of the company\u2019s factory in Bistrita, Romania. The email was carefully crafted using inside information to look perfectly genuine and requested a transfer of $44 million from the company\u2019s bank account. It tricked the employee into making the payment and the stolen money was switched to a different bank account in the Czech Republic.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image wp-image-10072 size-full\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"750\" height=\"500\" src=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/Fortune.jpg\" alt=\"BEC Attack\" class=\"wp-image-10072\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">(Source: Fortune)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Types_of_Business_Email_Compromise\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>Types of Business Email Compromise<\/b><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400; color: #000000;\">BEC attacks can be carried out through various methods. Based on these methods, following are the different types of BEC attacks:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"False_Invoice_Scam\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>False Invoice Scam<\/b><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400; color: #000000;\">Threat actors often use this medium to collect payments through fake transactions. The scammers impersonate some associated vendor or supplier and create a fake invoice in the name of the target business. They then trick an employee in the finance department by citing a fake invoice and demanding payment.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"CEO_Frauds\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>CEO Frauds<\/b><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400; color: #000000;\">In this type of BEC attack, threat actors impersonate C-suite executives and send fake emails to employees or other stakeholders. In such scammed emails, they either ask for confidential data or financial transactions.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Account_Compromise\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>Account Compromise<\/b><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400; color: #000000;\">In this type of attack, cybercriminals get illegal access to the email account of any employee. Then they send fake emails to stakeholders for payments or data. They often use means like credential theft or phishing to get access to the email account.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Attorney_Impersonation\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>Attorney Impersonation<\/b><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400; color: #000000;\">In this type of attack, threat actors impersonate the attorney of an organization. Then, they send fake emails to the organization or their stakeholders asking for permission to make fake transactions against some legal procedures or activities.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Data_Theft\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>Data Theft<\/b><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400; color: #000000;\">In this type of BEC attack, more often than not, the HR department is targeted. Threat actors intend to get all the employee information from the department so that they can lead spear-phishing attacks or spoofing attacks.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Conclusion\"><\/span><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><b>Conclusion<\/b><\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With companies being robbed by BEC scammers left and right, it has become essential to take the necessary precautions needed to keep your company safe. As the above-mentioned cases clearly prove, most of the <\/span><b>BEC attacks depend on spoofing a company\u2019s email domain<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to trick employees into believing that the phishing emails are sent by their superiors.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In order to protect your organization against the threat of BEC attacks, the best thing you can do is to secure your company\u2019s domain against spoofing and impersonation.<\/span><b> You can secure your email domain with an effective anti-spoofing and DMARC deployment tool like <\/b><a href=\"https:\/\/threatcop.com\/tdmarc\"><span style=\"color: #183994;\"><strong>TDMARC<\/strong><\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to prevent threat actors from sending fraudulent emails on your behalf. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Nowadays, BEC attacks are considered the most dangerous cyber threat for organizations and the most lucrative attack vector for cybercriminals. The average loss due to a BEC attack reached a whopping $80,000 in 2020. Many organizations worldwide are worried about the rising threat of BEC attacks. These attacks not only cause financial losses but also [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":7188,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[41,45,43],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2043","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cyber-attacks","category-email-security","category-social-engineering"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Top Real-life Examples of BEC Attacks | Threatcop<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"BEC attacks serve as the most dangerous cyber threat for organizations and and the most lucrative attack vector for cyber criminals...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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