A batch of malicious emails is arriving in inboxes today. They are fraudulent invoices sent from a brandjacked UK based business, and are impersonating the software of MYOB.
The emails pose a risk to unsuspecting recipients who may be tempted to click out of curiosity. Clicking the 'View Invoice' button provides a link to a malicious payload.
Adding to the likelihood that some recipients will fall for the scam, the well-formatted fraudulent emails look like a legitimate invoice from a company using MYOB software.
The emails which claim to be from 'HMS Group Pty Limited' are actually from a compromised MailChimp account, which may belong to a legitimate UK based business.
How can I protect myself from these types of email scams?
- Check who it was sent by. Examine the sender or reply-to address and check that it hasn’t been sent from a similar, but recently-registered domain.
- Be alert for strange sentence structure, or phrasing uncommon to the apparent sender.
- Never sidestep formal processes for payments. If in doubt, ring the apparent sender. If they’re not available, wait until they are. A funds transfer is better to arrive later than to be lost without a trace to an overseas cybercriminal.
- Implement scam-proof approvals processes for financial transfers such as two-factor authentication, which requires two employees to sign off on wire transfers
- Education is imperative. Teach staff and employees what fraudulent emails look like.
- Ensure your email security is up to scratch. A cloud-based, threat detection service such as MailGuard will protect your staff in real-time from targeted attacks, without the dangerous time-lag common with signature-based antivirus vendors.
Click here to download your free executive guide, Surviving the Rise of Cybercrime, by MailGuard CEO and founder Craig McDonald.
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