Banks are using software originally developed to prevent
credit card fraud to detect money laundering by criminal gangs
responsible for a spate of e-mail phishing attacks.
The anti-fraud software is enabling banks to identify accounts used
by gangs to launder money stolen from the accounts of online bank
customers, the Association of Payment Clearing Services has
revealed.
More than 500,000 customers a year in the UK are falling victim to
phishing e-mails, which attempt to con them into disclosing account
details and passwords on fake bank websites, according to research
by Apacs.
The banks are fighting back by using monitoring software such as
Falcon and Prism to identify suspicious cash transfers to bank
accounts operated by middlemen.
"One of the main bottlenecks for the fraudsters is their ability to
move funds out of the system. The banks have been putting a lot of
effort in the back end to pick up the suspicious transactions,"
said Tom Salmond, manager of Apacs' e-banking fraud liaison
group.
Banks have also begun monitoring a spate of fake job advertisements
on recruitment sites, the association said.
The adverts, which have proliferated during the past month, attempt
to recruit money laundering "mules" who are willing to let
fraudsters pass funds through their accounts in return for a
commission.
Over the past year the banks have put in new processes that allow
them to respond quickly to phishing attacks and to work with ISPs
to have the sites rapidly shut down, Salmond said.
Co-operation between banks, ISPs and police has improved, with
banks in different parts of the world regularly sharing
intelligence on phishing.
"When the scams first came out, a lot of ISPs were fearful of
closing down sites. It was necessary for some of the banks to
threaten to sue ISPs," he said.