Shareholder-tracking company Equiniti shells out $850K to SEC over breaches | CyberScoop<\/title> <meta name=\"description\" content=\"According to the Securities and Exchange Commission, the company\u2019s failures led to the loss of $6.6 million in client funds.\"> <link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/shareholder-tracking-company-equiniti-shells-out-850k-to-sec-over-breaches\/\"> <meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\"> <meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\"> <meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Shareholder-tracking company Equiniti shells out $850K to SEC over breaches\"> <meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"According to the Securities and Exchange Commission, the company\u2019s failures led to the loss of $6.6 million in client funds.\"> <meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/shareholder-tracking-company-equiniti-shells-out-850k-to-sec-over-breaches\/\"> <meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"CyberScoop\"> <meta 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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--event js-stickybar\">\n<div class=\"stickybar__details\" readability=\"4.952380952381\">\n<div class=\"stickybar__info js-sticky-bar-content\" readability=\"32\">\n<p>Voting is open for the 2024 CyberScoop 50 awards! <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <a class=\"stickybar__link button button-tertiary\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/cyberscoop50\/vote\/\">Click here!<\/a> <\/div>\n<p> <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=\"25.914572864322\">\n<div class=\"single-article__header-content\" readability=\"31.723849372385\">\n<p> According to the Securities and Exchange Commission, the company\u2019s failures led to the loss of $6.6 million in client funds. <\/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=\"426\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/shareholder-tracking-company-equiniti-shells-out-850k-to-sec-over-breaches.jpg?resize=640%2C426&ssl=1\" class=\"single-article__cover-image wp-post-image\" alt decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\" 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https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/shareholder-tracking-company-equiniti-shells-out-850k-to-sec-over-breaches-2.jpg?resize=252,168 252w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/shareholder-tracking-company-equiniti-shells-out-850k-to-sec-over-breaches-2.jpg?resize=506,337 506w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/shareholder-tracking-company-equiniti-shells-out-850k-to-sec-over-breaches-2.jpg?resize=1013,675 1013w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/shareholder-tracking-company-equiniti-shells-out-850k-to-sec-over-breaches-2.jpg?resize=1265,843 1265w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1013px) 100vw, 1013px\"><figcaption> Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock exchange during morning trading on Nov. 10, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago\/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=\"17.627502175805\"><body readability=\"36.969222743871\"><\/p>\n<p>A company that manages registered shareholders for stock-issuing companies agreed to pay $850,000 under a settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission over breaches in 2022 and 2023 that the commission said led to the loss of $6.6 million in client funds.<\/p>\n<p>The SEC said that in 2022 an unknown attacker hijacked an email chain between a client and Equiniti, formerly known as American Stock Transfer, and fooled the firm into transferring nearly $4.8 million to Hong Kong bank accounts. In 2023, according to the agency, another unknown attacker created fake accounts that linked to real client accounts and then transferred $1.9 million to external bank accounts.<\/p>\n<p>In the second case, the attacker was able to make the transfers \u201ceven though the names and other personal information associated with the fraudulent accounts did not match those of the legitimate accounts,\u201d according to the SEC. Stolen Social Security numbers abetted the theft.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAmerican Stock Transfer failed to provide the safeguards necessary to protect its clients\u2019 funds and securities from the types of cyber intrusions that have become a near-constant threat to companies and the markets,\u201d Monique C. Winkler, director of the SEC\u2019s San Francisco regional office, said in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sec.gov\/newsroom\/press-releases\/2024-101\">a statement this week<\/a>. \u201cAs threat actors become more sophisticated in the cyber space, transfer agents must act to implement and maintain effective safeguards and procedures around client assets.\u201d<\/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>Equiniti was able to recover funds in both incidents \u2014 $1 million and $1.6 million respectively. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n<p>The SEC has stepped up <a href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/bidens-cybersecurity-legacy-a-big-shift-to-private-sector-responsibility\/\">its regulation<\/a> and scrutiny of cyber. Last month, though, <a href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/judge-dismisses-much-of-sec-suit-against-solarwinds-over-cybersecurity-disclosures\/\">a judge threw out<\/a> most of the agency\u2019s case against SolarWinds over allegedly misleading statements about the security of its Orion software surrounding the landmark breach of that company.<\/p>\n<p><\/body> <\/p>\n<footer class=\"single-article__footer\">\n<div class=\"author-card\" readability=\"7.7216117216117\">\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\/08\/shareholder-tracking-company-equiniti-shells-out-850k-to-sec-over-breaches-1.jpg?w=640&ssl=1\" alt=\"Tim Starks\"> <\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"author-card__details\" readability=\"10.901098901099\">\n<h4 class=\"author-card__name\">Written by Tim Starks<\/h4>\n<p> Tim Starks is senior reporter at CyberScoop. His previous stops include working at The Washington Post, POLITICO and Congressional Quarterly. An Evansville, Ind. native, he’s covered cybersecurity since 2003. Email Tim here: <a href=\"mailto:tim.starks@cyberscoop.com\">tim.starks@cyberscoop.com<\/a>. <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"single-article__tags-container\">\n<h4 class=\"single-article__tags-title\">In This Story<\/h4>\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 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{"id":4989,"date":"2024-08-22T13:01:53","date_gmt":"2024-08-22T18:01:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/?p=81464"},"modified":"2024-08-22T13:01:53","modified_gmt":"2024-08-22T18:01:53","slug":"shareholder-tracking-company-equiniti-shells-out-850k-to-sec-over-breaches","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/2024\/08\/22\/shareholder-tracking-company-equiniti-shells-out-850k-to-sec-over-breaches\/","title":{"rendered":"Shareholder-tracking company Equiniti shells out $850K to SEC over breaches"},"content":{"rendered":"