In mid-January, under the cloak of secrecy, the alleged owner of a company in West Palatinate asked an employee to transfer around one million euros abroad.
The accountant received a fake email from the supposed managing director. Sworn to special secrecy, the man was asked to transfer almost one million euros to a bank account in China. The importance of the transaction for the company and the timely urgency were emphasized. However, payment must be made discreetly and immediately, according to the alleged company boss.
Believing that the instruction came from the company owner, the accountant transferred the money to Hong Kong. Due to the agreed confidentiality, the transaction was only discussed in the company after several days. According to information from the house bank, the transfer could no longer be reversed. There was damage and financial loss that threatened the existence of the company with several hundred employees.
In cooperation with the Rhineland-Palatinate State Criminal Police Office and the Federal Criminal Police Office, Interpol managed to stop the transfer in London. The conversion from euros into the Chinese currency Renminbi Yuan should take place there. On Thursday, the real company owner announced that he had gotten the money back.
As early as November last year (we reported), two other companies in West Palatinate had become the target of this new scam. It is referred to as “CEO fraud” (CEO: Chief Executive Officer = head of the company, fraud = fraud) and, if successful, can cause immense amounts of damage to a company. Before the crime is committed, the company is extensively spied out in order to know the people involved and their position in the company so that they can be addressed personally. The employees are obliged to maintain absolute confidentiality and are put under time pressure so that the deal doesn't fall through. The type of fraud is relevant nationwide and worldwide. It is advisable not to make such transfers until you have spoken to the head of the company personally (not just by email).
Please send any inquiries to: Police Headquarters West Palatinate Telephone: 0631-369-1080 Email: [email protected] www.polizei.rlp.de/pp.westpfalz Source: http://www.presseportal.de/blaulicht/pm/117683/ 3551958
Notes:
1) This content reflects the current state of affairs at the time of publication. The reproduction of individual images, screenshots, embeds or video sequences serves to discuss the topic. 2) Individual contributions were created through the use of machine assistance and were carefully checked by the Mimikama editorial team before publication. ( Reason )