Fraudsters fake a senior central banker’s details in new email scam

The name of a senior official at the Central Bank of Ireland (CBI) is being used in the latest online phishing scam.

The bank has warned the public, via a social-media post, that it has become aware of an email phishing campaign which pretends to be from Neil Whoriskey, who is the secretary of the bank, head of its internal governance division, and has previously been the CBI’s official spokesman.

The messages impersonating Mr Whoriskey ask for money in other to release an inheritance. They are sent from an email address that resembles those of the Central Bank, such as [email protected] or variations on it.

“The Central Bank’s systems are not affected by this issue and continue to operate as normal,” said the CBI.

Asked how widespread the scam has been, whether there are any known victims, and if An Garda Síochána has been informed, the bank would not elaborate on its statement.

This is the second time in a matter of months that the name of a senior member of Central Bank staff has been used in a scam.

The Central Bank also issued a warning on March 14 that there was a phishing email in circulation purportedly from Louise Dennehy, its chief information officer, seeking information on behalf of the regulatory department.

While attempts at financial fraud are becoming more sophisticated, the ploy of pretending to be from the CBI has been in play for several years.

In 2020, the bank said a scam was being attempted using email addresses that resembled its own, such as [email protected] and [email protected].

The aim of a phishing email is to trick bank customers into sharing their personal details, such as PIN numbers, passwords or answers to security questions. They often take the form of an email pretending to come from a bank or service provider asking a customer to “confirm” their details.

The names and emails of staff in commercial banks have previously been used by scammers. The European Central Bank (ECB) has said that the public regularly alerts them to fraud attempts in which the name or logo of the ECB has been used, or where ECB staff members have been impersonated.

“In other cases, criminals use phone numbers that look like they are from the ECB,” it said.

Only last November, the Central Bank launched a fresh campaign to help Irish consumers avoid scams, warning that fraudsters were using increasingly sophisticated methods, and pleading with the public to be vigilant.

Earlier this week, Finance Minister Michael McGrath told the Dáil that his department is drafting a National Payments Strategy that, among other things, is considering actions to prevent fraud, which he described as “a critical issue”.

He said it was important that the National Payments Plan “examines payment fraud to identify further preventative domestic measures”.

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