SAN JOSE, Calif. (KRON) — A scammer hacked into an email account to pose as an employee of a business and steal half a million dollars from a victim in San Jose, police said Tuesday.
The victim was scammed by a “Business Email Compromise,” the San Jose Police Department said. “A Business Email Compromise occurs when a suspect hacks into a business email account. The suspect then sends updated payment information to the business’ customers, effectively rerouting payments to the suspect’s account,” SJPD Officer Tanya Hernandez wrote.
Fraud detectives identified the email hacker as a 51-year-old Pennsylvania woman, Aleida Torres. She remains at large and is wanted for grand theft, police said.
Torres allegedly instructed the victim to send a wire transfer for an invoice of $500,000 in January. The victim did not know that they were being scammed until after the bank wire transfer was completed, according to Hernandez.
Detectives said they recovered $400,000 of the stolen funds.
Aleida Torres is wanted by the San Jose Police Department for grand theft. (SJPD images)
Business Email Compromise scams have become more common within the last few years.
“In some cases, many of the perpetrators are located in other countries. The San Jose Police Department Financial Crimes Unit would like to remind the public of the importance of implementing cybersecurity measures when doing business online,” Hernandez wrote.
To report a financial crime including forgery, fraud or ID theft, you can fill out an Online Crime/ Incident Report or call 408-277-8900.
SAN JOSE, Calif. (KRON) — A scammer hacked into an email account to pose as an employee of a business and steal half a million dollars from a victim in San Jose, police said Tuesday. The victim was scammed by a “Business Email Compromise,” the San Jose Police Department said. “A Business Email Compromise occurs […]
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