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When buying gift cards is a red flag

The humble gift card. A practical present? Appreciated gift? Or is it something more sinister?

For one employee is a local business, an email appearing to be from their boss with a request to purchase gift cards- $3,000 worth of gift cards to be exact- was a red flag that went unnoticed.

The employee subsequently bought the cards and sent through the gift card codes so “the boss” could send them to staff members.

Unfortunately, the email wasn’t from ‘the Boss’.

The boss’s email account had been compromised. Instead, after the employee purchased the gift cards, the codes were provided instead to an unknown cyber criminal who pocketed the $3,000.

The cyber criminal pocketed the $3,000… but the company was still liable.

The business was responsible for reimbursing the employee and covering their out-of-pocket cost, as the employee thought they were acting under the direction of their boss.

Compromised email accounts can have dramatic consequences for your business:

  • Financial loss
  • Reputation damage
  • Broken client trust
  • Damaged staff morale
  • Breach of privacy

Cyber security safeguards like monitoring and staff training can prevent incidents like this blowing your budget and creating chaos in your business.

If you need an audit to check the strength of your cyber defenses and prevent future breaches, /">book a call with a cyber security expert today.

 

Find out how we helped one business survive a malware attack.