Luxembourg-based Orion S.A., a leading supplier of carbon black, has been defrauded of a staggering $60 million. The company alerted the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on August 10th through an official filing (Form 8-K).
The filing reveals that a non-executive employee became the target of a criminal operation. The document states: "On August 10, 2024, Orion S.A. determined that a Company employee, who is not a Named Executive Officer, was the target of a criminal scheme that resulted in multiple fraudulent wire transfers to accounts controlled by unknown individuals."
While Orion refrained from sharing specific details about the attack, the nature of the incident - multiple fraudulent wire transfers initiated by an employee - strongly suggests a BEC scam.
In a typical BEC scam, cybercriminals gain access to a legitimate email account belonging to a high-ranking official within a company or impersonate them through a spoofed email address. They then target employees with access to company finances, tricking them into authorizing unauthorized payments.
Common tactics employed by BEC scammers include:
- Urgency and secrecy: Criminals may claim the company is in the process of acquiring a competitor and needs to expedite the transaction confidentially to avoid media attention or alerting rivals.
- Impersonation: Scammers may use stolen email credentials or create lookalike email addresses to convincingly impersonate executives.
- Phone calls: In some cases, the attackers may even follow up with phone calls to pressure the targeted employee into acting swiftly.
The effectiveness of BEC scams lies in their ability to exploit gaps in communication within large organizations. Many employees may not have personal interactions with senior management, making them more susceptible to falling for impersonations and deceptive tactics.
Reports indicate that BEC attacks are a major form of cybercrime, causing significant financial losses, and rivaling the damage inflicted by ransomware attacks.