New Scam Targets Office Workers, Drains Bank Accounts

A new fraud scheme involves someone pretending to be a company boss or CEO, targeting money from office workers, including those in finance departments. This crime, known as a ‘boss scam’, involves impersonating the identity of a CEO and other senior executives. It typically occurs on various platforms, such as email, WhatsApp, Microsoft Teams, and other social media. The perpetrators will ask employees to send money to their accounts. The crime has even prompted India’s market regulator to intervene. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has issued a warning about the fraud. The agency also reminded people not to send money to someone based solely on instructions received through platforms like social media. Another method used is sending malware. When the file is opened, it hijacks WhatsApp Web, endangering the victim’s device. The fraudsters gain access to finance officers by hijacking WhatsApp Web. The employee is then asked to send money to the perpetrators. ‘The fraudsters gain access to the finance officer’s WhatsApp account and then contact accounting or finance employees, asking them to make immediate payments to a designated intermediary bank account,’ SEBI stated.