14 DAY TRIAL // Last week cyber criminals managed to steal almost $600,000 from the bank accounts of Brigantine City, New Jersey, via fraudulent wire transfers.
Brian Krebs reports that the attack occurred after-hours on September 28th, when multiple transfers were initiated from the city's accounts with TD Bank.
Fortunately, the bank was vigilant and immediately contacted the city's financial department to inquire about their legitimacy.
Because it acted quickly, the bank was able to reverse $400,000, which were sent to accounts belonging to various individuals across the United States.
According to an official statement, the city's police department works with the FBI, the New Jersey State Police and TD Bank's security team in the investigation.
It wasn't yet established if the online banking credentials were stolen as a result of a malware infection or a phishing attack, but in most cases like this one, a banking trojan is usually used.
It also looks like the fraudsters were sloppy, because the amounts transfered varied from a few thousand to over $300,000, which is what probably triggered red flags at the bank.
Fraudsters usually keep the amount under $10,000 in order to avoid attracting attention. That's how $100,000 was stolen from Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey, back in March.
"I believe it will be recovered and/or reimbursed to the city of Brigantine in some manner," Brigantine City Mayor Phil Guenther told Press of Atlantic City, following the incident.
He added that the city "will be working with all agencies involved and will adhere to any recommendations in the future."
Last week, the US authorities announced a major international law enforcement operation against fraud gangs, which used the ZeuS trojan to steal over $70 million.
A number of 96 people have been charged and 39 have been arrested in the United States alone. Additional suspects were took into custody in the UK and Ukraine.