Watch Out for These Real-Life Email Hacking & Wire Transfer Scams!

Bergen County matrimonial attorney Paul Goldhamer, B.A, J.D. Esq. is a co-founder of Kantrowitz, Goldhamer, Graifman, Perlmutter & Carballo, P.C.. In addition to practicing family law,  Mr. Goldhamer keeps a busy schedule of teaching, lecturing to professional organizations, making radio and TV appearances and providing free legal seminars to the public in NJ and NY. In 2014, Mr. Goldhamer was selected as a “Super Lawyer” by Superlawyers.com.

by Paul Goldhamer, Esq.

Amazing scam:

Recently a law firm that we do business with was almost the victim of a wire transfer scam. Fortunately for them, KGG picked up the scam being perpetrated on them. This is how it worked:

Our email system is heavily protected, as are our Internet connections. We sent wire information for the settlement of our client’s $500,000 case to the law firm representing the insurance carrier.

The other law firm’s email was hacked and our email to them was picked up by the hackers. The hackers altered the wire information, telephone & fax number and email so that the receiver could not properly respond to KGG. We routinely call to follow up on wire transfers and ask for a copy of their wire instructions. Upon seeing the wire instructions they were acting upon, we realized the email had been altered. The other firm was on the verge of wiring $500,000 to a an account in North Carolina, which undoubtedly would’ve been immediately transferred out of the country.

Similar scams occur all of the time. On the very same day as the above incident, one of our clients noticed an $18,000 debit in his checking account for the purchase of art in Arizona, also by wire transfer. Upon notifying the bank, they discovered that his email had been hacked and the scammers were using his account to instruct the bank to wire money to purchase items in Arizona. Because this was discovered so quickly, the hackers upon trying to pick up the merchandise were arrested together with an employee of the store, who was in on the scam.

You must double check anything and everything that’s really important. You must review your monthly credit card bills and your bank statements religiously. To protect yourself, any peculiarities must be reported to the credit card company or your bank immediately.

We at KGG diligently look after our client’s needs. Call us any time with your concerns. We are not just lawyers, but ‘Counselors at law’. Helping people is our business.