Financial industry research and analysis to help you understand key trends and issues facing financial institutions.
BlogU.S. Court Case: 9 Banks and 50 Bank Accounts Exploited by Human Trafficking RingFebruary 21, 2017 by Denise Hutchings “Follow the money and you will find the trafficker… Financial investigation plays a crucial role in successful investigation of trafficking in persons.” An outstanding financial investigation which was conducted in the recent prosecution of a U.S. based human trafficking ring... |
BlogU.S. Bank Account Information Sold on Dark Web MarketplaceAugust 25, 2016 by Denise Hutchings A recent online post under the “Fraud” category of a Dark Web marketplace read as follows: “High Balance [redacted bank name] Logins 30K-150K Available…I bring you freshly hacked [redacted bank name] Bank Account Logins. The accounts are notorious for having... |
Blog314(b) Information Sharing Practices Should Adapt the Four COCs of a Fusion CenterMay 23, 2016 by Denise Hutchings “A Fusion Center is an effective and efficient mechanism to exchange information and intelligence, maximize resources, streamline operations, and improve the ability to fight crime and terrorism by analyzing data from a variety of sources.” (Source: U.S. DOJ Global Justice... |
BlogThousands of Human Trafficking Arrests in the U.S. Plus Recent Money Flow to Human Smuggling HubsApril 5, 2016 by Denise Hutchings “Human trafficking is not a problem that law enforcement can tackle alone. It requires the close collaboration with many concerned groups looking at this crime through different lenses.” (Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr.) Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance advocates... |
BlogFinancial Fraud Charges in ISIS-Related Arrests in the USFebruary 8, 2016 by Denise Hutchings Yesterday the House Homeland Security Committee reported that law enforcement authorities have arrested 81 individuals in ISIS-related cases in the United States since 2014 – 62 in 2015 alone. The cases include individuals plotting attacks; attempting to travel to join... |
BlogA Court Case to Illustrate that Card Fraud Funded TerrorismNovember 30, 2015 by Denise Hutchings Financial Institutions Undeniably Have a Role to Play in the Fight Against Terrorist Financing I recently studied several court cases that involved loan fraud and/or card fraud to fund terrorism. Details in one particular indictment which was unsealed less than... |
Blog15 Red Flags for New Account FraudJuly 14, 2015 by Denise Hutchings Compromised credentials from a data breach or malware are frequently exploited by financial criminals to perpetrate new account fraud. The agency [FBI] used to learn about a new, large-scale data breach every two or three weeks. “Now, it is close... |
Blog10 Ploys Fraudsters Use to Commit Identity FraudJune 26, 2015 by Denise Hutchings Financial Criminals and SSNs Make a Bad Combination A Social Security number (SSN), which supposedly distinguishes one person’s identity from another, is a key piece of information for a financial institution’s Customer Due Diligence (CDD) process and opening bank accounts.... |
Blog58 Red Flags for Terrorist FinancingMay 26, 2015 by Denise Hutchings “Simply by using standard anti-money laundering typologies financial institutions should have been able to identify fourteen instances of terrorism financing as being suspicious, though not on their face to raise suspicion of terrorism financing.” Numerous Terrorism Financing Cases Reveal Suspicious... |
Blog28 Red Flags for Elder Financial AbuseApril 28, 2015 by Denise Hutchings “Growing Epidemic” and “Rampant, Largely Invisible, Expensive and Lethal Problem” “Elder financial abuse has become more acute.” This somber assessment by Thomas Curry, Chief Officer of the OCC (Office of the Comptroller of the Currency) which he shared in a... |
