Massachusetts town loses $445,000 in email scam | StateScoop<\/title> <meta name=\"description\" content=\"A business email compromise cyberattack has cost the small town on Arlington, Massachusetts, more than $445,000.\"> <link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/statescoop.com\/massachusetts-town-loses-445000-email-scam\/\"> <meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\"> <meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\"> <meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Massachusetts town loses $445,000 in email scam | StateScoop\"> <meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A business email compromise cyberattack has cost the small town on Arlington, Massachusetts, more than $445,000.\"> <meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/statescoop.com\/massachusetts-town-loses-445000-email-scam\/\"> <meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"StateScoop\"> <meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-06-10T17:37:02+00:00\"> <meta property=\"article:modified_time\" 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content=\"https:\/\/statescoop.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2023\/01\/cropped-ss_favicon.png?w=270\"> <\/head><body class=\"post-template-default single single-post postid-65046 single-format-standard\" id=\"readabilityBody\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/statescoop.com\/massachusetts-town-loses-445000-email-scam\/#main\" class=\"skip-to-content-link visually-hidden-focusable\">Skip to main content<\/a> <\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--top ad--top-desktop\">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p> <main id=\"main\" role=\"main\" tabindex=\"-1\"> <\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--top ad--top-mobile\">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<section id=\"stickybar\" class=\"stickybar stickybar--newsletter js-stickybar\" readability=\"0.82\"> <button class=\"stickybar__close js-stickybar-close\" aria-controls=\"stickybar\"> <svg class=\"icon icon--close\" width=\"21\" height=\"22\" viewBox=\"0 0 21 22\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"m.822.518-.805.805L9.695 11 .017 20.678l.805.805 9.678-9.678 9.677 9.678.806-.805L11.305 11l9.678-9.677-.806-.805-9.677 9.677L.822.518Z\" fill=\"currentColor\" \/><\/svg> <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Close<\/span> <\/button> <\/section>\n<article class=\"single-article content\">\n<div class=\"single-article__container js-single-article-content\">\n<header class=\"single-article__header \" readability=\"24.142222222222\">\n<div class=\"single-article__header-content\" readability=\"30.685714285714\">\n<ul class=\"single-article__eyebrow\">\n<li class=\"single-article__category\"> <a class=\"single-article__category-link\" href=\"https:\/\/statescoop.com\/news\/county-local\/\"> <span>County & Local<\/span> <\/a> <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p> A business email compromise cyberattack has cost the small town on Arlington, Massachusetts, more than $445,000. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"single-article__cover-wrap\">\n<figure class=\"single-article__cover\"> <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" fetchpriority=\"high\" width=\"640\" height=\"409\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/massachusetts-town-loses-445000-in-email-scam.jpg?resize=640%2C409&ssl=1\" class=\"single-article__cover-image wp-post-image\" alt decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/massachusetts-town-loses-445000-in-email-scam-2.jpg 1900w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/massachusetts-town-loses-445000-in-email-scam-2.jpg?resize=300,192 300w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/massachusetts-town-loses-445000-in-email-scam-2.jpg?resize=768,491 768w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/massachusetts-town-loses-445000-in-email-scam-2.jpg?resize=1024,655 1024w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/massachusetts-town-loses-445000-in-email-scam-2.jpg?resize=1536,982 1536w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/massachusetts-town-loses-445000-in-email-scam-2.jpg?resize=600,384 600w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/massachusetts-town-loses-445000-in-email-scam-2.jpg?resize=263,168 263w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/massachusetts-town-loses-445000-in-email-scam-2.jpg?resize=527,337 527w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/massachusetts-town-loses-445000-in-email-scam-2.jpg?resize=1056,675 1056w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/massachusetts-town-loses-445000-in-email-scam-2.jpg?resize=1318,843 1318w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1056px) 100vw, 1056px\"><figcaption> (Getty Images) <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"single-article__content\">\n<div class=\"single-article__content-inner has-drop-cap\"> <html readability=\"40.651555555556\"><body readability=\"81.03937007874\"><\/p>\n<p>A cyberattack on Arlington, Massachusetts, a town located about six miles northwest of Boston, recently lifted nearly half a million dollars from its coffers.<\/p>\n<p>Town manager Jim Feeney <a href=\"https:\/\/www.arlingtonma.gov\/home\/showdocument?id=70319&t=638531930161414172\">admitted on June 5<\/a> that the town, home to a roughly 46,000 residents, had been the \u201cvictim of a cybercrime.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThrough what is known as a business email compromise,\u201d he wrote, \u201cperpetrators used phishing, spoofing, social engineering, and compromised email accounts to ultimately facilitate wire fraud totaling $445,945.73.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Feeney said hackers infiltrated the town\u2019s email system by impersonating a vendor working on the <a href=\"https:\/\/ahsbuilding.org\/\">Arlington High School Building Project<\/a>, a five-year, partially state-funded rebuild of a local secondary school due to increased enrollment that began construction in 2020.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>According to his statement, town employees in September received legitimate emails from the vendor to discuss issues processing payments. But, unbeknownst to the town, the cybercriminals had compromised some town employee user accounts and were monitoring email correspondence.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey seized the opportunity to impersonate the vendor with an email domain that appeared genuine,\u201d the statement read, \u201crequesting a change in their payment method from check to electronic funds transfer.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Once the new payment method was established, the town made four monthly payments \u2014 from last October to January \u2014 to what they believed was the vendor\u2019s account. In February, the vendor reported it had not received the payments.<\/p>\n<p>Feeney said once the town realized it had been scammed, it alerted law enforcement agencies and its banking institution, which began a \u201cdigital forensics investigation, retained a breach coach, and instituted immediate response measures to secure our network.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The investigation discovered additional attempts to intercept wire payments over the course of the four-month fraud, totaling $5 million, though none of those was successful. The investigation found that no sensitive or resident data was breached during the incident.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>The town\u2019s banking institution was able to recoup $3,308, about 6% of the total money lost. The estimated total cost of high school construction project is roughly $240 million, according to the project\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/ahsbuilding.org\/about\/faq\/\">website<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The Arlington High School Building Committee voted to authorize the missing payments to the vendor from the project\u2019s funds, the loss of which Feeney said will not impact its design or timeline. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are making every effort to improve our cybersecurity posture. Cybersecurity is an ever-changing and evolving threat. As an organization we will continue to adapt our defenses to emerging threats,\u201d his statement concluded.<\/p>\n<p>According to a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fbi.gov\/contact-us\/field-offices\/sanfrancisco\/news\/fbi-releases-internet-crime-report#:~:text=In%202023%2C%20the%20IC3%20received,in%20losses%20compared%20to%202022.\">report<\/a> published in April, the FBI\u2019s Internet Crime Complaint Center received 21,489 business email compromise complaints in 2023, with adjusted losses totaling over $2.9 billion.<\/p>\n<p><\/body> <\/p>\n<footer class=\"single-article__footer\" readability=\"4\">\n<div class=\"author-card\" readability=\"13\">\n<div class=\"author-card__avatar\">\n<figure class=\"author-card__image-wrap\"> <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"author-card__image\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/massachusetts-town-loses-445000-in-email-scam-1.jpg?w=640&ssl=1\" alt=\"Sophia Fox-Sowell\"> <\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><h4 class=\"author-card__name\">Written by Sophia Fox-Sowell<\/h4>\n<p> Sophia Fox-Sowell reports on artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and government regulation for StateScoop. She was previously a multimedia producer for CNET, where her coverage focused on private sector innovation in food production, climate change and space through podcasts and video content. She earned her bachelor\u2019s in anthropology at Wagner College and master\u2019s in media innovation from Northeastern University. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/footer>\n<p> <\/html><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"single-article__ads js-single-article-sidebar\">\n<div class=\"ad ad--sidebar js-single-article-sidebar-5 ad--rightrail_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ad ad--sidebar js-single-article-sidebar-4 ad--rightrail_2 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ad ad--sidebar js-single-article-sidebar-3 ad--rightrail_3 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"popular-stories popular-stories--single-post\">\n<div class=\"popular-stories__container\">\n<h2 class=\"popular-stories__title\"> More Scoops <\/h2>\n<p>  <\/div>\n<p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <\/p>\n<section class=\"latest-podcasts\">\n<h2 class=\"latest-podcasts__title\"> Latest Podcasts\t<\/h2>\n<\/section>\n<div class=\"top-categories\">\n<div class=\"top-categories__container\">\n<h3 class=\"top-categories__category-title\">Modernization<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"top-categories__container\">\n<h3 class=\"top-categories__category-title\">Cybersecurity<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> <\/main> <\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--bottom \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"interstitial\" class=\"welcome__container\"> <button id=\"close-modal-1\" class=\"welcome__clickable_area\"><\/button> <\/p>\n<div class=\"welcome__ad_wrapper\">\n<p> <button id=\"close-modal-3\" class=\"welcome__continue-button\">Continue to StateScoop<\/button> <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>   <\/body> <a href=\"https:\/\/statescoop.com\/massachusetts-town-loses-445000-email-scam\/\">Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Massachusetts town loses $445,000 in email scam | StateScoop Skip<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[325],"class_list":["post-3958","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-uncategorized"],"featured_image_urls":{"full":"","thumbnail":"","medium":"","medium_large":"","large":"","1536x1536":"","2048x2048":"","chromenews-featured":"","chromenews-large":"","chromenews-medium":""},"author_info":{"display_name":"Cyber Scoop","author_link":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/author\/cyberscoop\/"},"category_info":"<a href=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/category\/uncategorized\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Uncategorized<\/a>","tag_info":"Uncategorized","comment_count":"0","jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3958","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3958"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3958\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3958"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3958"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3958"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}

{"id":3958,"date":"2024-06-10T13:06:31","date_gmt":"2024-06-10T18:06:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/?p=80694"},"modified":"2024-06-10T13:06:31","modified_gmt":"2024-06-10T18:06:31","slug":"massachusetts-town-loses-445000-in-email-scam","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/2024\/06\/10\/massachusetts-town-loses-445000-in-email-scam\/","title":{"rendered":"Massachusetts town loses $445,000 in email scam"},"content":{"rendered":"