Business Notebook: FBI agent: Cyber criminals more savvy, dangerous than even five years ago

Cyber criminals are becoming more sophisticated, and businesses need to be more savvy than ever to guard against becoming a victim, said FBI special agent Monique Comeau at a Better Business Bureau seminar Thursday in Cape Girardeau.

Comeau, a veteran agent with 24 years of experience, made the transition from complex fraud investigations to cybersecurity a few years ago.

"It was definitely an eye opener," she said.

Even five to 10 years ago, she said, crimes were typically smaller, but now, virtual private networks, or VPNs, operating from foreign countries make it easier for thieves to operate anonymously.

"If we can warn people of the danger, it's a better scenario than if they've fallen for the fraud," Comeau said.

Luncheon attendees listen as FBI special agent Monique Comeau of St. Louis speaks about cybersecurity Thursday to attendees of a Better Business Bureau luncheon inside the former federal building at 339 Broadway in Cape Girardeau.BEN MATTHEWS

While cyber threats fall under different categories, such as "hactivists" making a statement (targeting an IP address of a business or individual they disagree with), or theft of intellectual property, her office frequently deals with fraudulent wire transfers or a tax-return scam.

The fraudulent wire transfer typically starts out as an email from a scammer. Often, Comeau said, the email text will appear to be written by a native English speaker, and will include details that make it seem legitimate.

Some even come from an email address looking like it originated within the targeted company, she said.

Scammers are checking social media accounts of CEOs and CFOs, she said, looking for vacation photos.

"They're looking closely," she said.

Then, a scammer will pose as the official, either spoofing the email address or buying a domain with one character off of the target address, Comeau said.

That's easy to overlook, especially when an employee might be reviewing hundreds or thousands of email messages in a day, she added.

"As much as people think we're savvy, unfortunately, we're not," Comeau said.

One step employees can take is to watch header information on email messages, to make sure they're actually being sent from a legitimate email address.

Instead of simply hitting "reply," or calling a phone number contained in the body of an email, she said, it's important to type in the email in one's address book.

"Actors are using controlled bank accounts, satellite offices," she said -- that helps skirt suspicions.

If a request for inventory items or merchandise is received from someone posing as a vendor, Comeau said, it's important to check the address supplies are to be sent to -- often, a scammer will inveigle an unwitting shipping company in the scheme, and the company won't receive reimbursement for goods that are long gone by the time anyone realizes anything was amiss.

"Wires are in the millions, going out," Comeau said. "Often the company doesn't even know, and an employee thinks they're following strict instructions."

Key is vigilance by every employee, Comeau said.

Having longer, rather than more complicated, passwords changed frequently is another important point, she said.

What to do after fraud is discovered? Comeau said contacting the FBI immediately is important.

Unfortunately, the window for being able to recover funds is short -- often, it takes longer to discover fraud in the first place, she said.

And, she added, no matter how small the fraud was, it can and should be reported to the FBI at ic3.gov.

Cancer Institute re-accredited

Saint Francis Medical Center's Cancer Institute recently received a three-year accreditation from the Commission on Cancer (CoC), a program of the American College of Surgeons, according to a news release.

The commission evaluated Saint Francis' Cancer Institute on 34 standards based on program management, clinical services, continuum of care services, patient outcomes and data quality.

The Accreditation Program, a component of the CoC, sets quality-of-care standards for cancer programs and reviews the programs to ensure they conform to those standards. Accreditation by the CoC is given only to those facilities that have voluntarily committed to providing the highest level of quality cancer care and that undergo a rigorous evaluation process and review of their performance.

180 Healthcare partners with medical center

Cape Girardeau company 180 Healthcare recently partnered with Missouri Delta Medical Center to expand and offer more services, according to a news release.

Employers and individuals who use 180 Healthcare, with the new partnership, can now be seen in Sikeston, Dexter, New Madrid, Benton, Chaffee, Portageville and Charleston, Missouri, the release stated.

180 Healthcare is a concierge medical service providing several services, including discounts on labs, imaging, prescriptions and chriopractic care, access to doctors, CPR and first-aid training, a gym membership and more.

Southeast MBA program honored

The Princeton Review ranked Southeast Missouri State University's MBA program among the nation's outstanding business schools, according to a recent news release.

Princeton Review chose 252 on-campus MBA programs in the United States. The ranking is not from 1 to 252, but publishes rankings in several categories along with detailed profiles of each school, the release stated.

The MBA Program in Southeast's Harrison College of Business and Computing is accredited by The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), an honor held by only 20 percent of colleges in the country and fewer than 400 MBA programs worldwide, the release stated.

More information is online at princetonreview.com/best-business-schools.

Piano store will be back at West Park Mall

Lacefield Music will be back at West Park Mall for the 2018 holiday season, opening Nov. 23, according to a company announcement.

The store sells pianos and electronic keyboards.

Ribbon cuttings

Restart Recover, an outpatient opioid addiction treatment center, will hold a ribbon cutting at 11 a.m. Thursday at 21 Doctors' Park, Suite A, in Cape Girardeau, to celebrate a grand opening.

HD Media Systems will celebrate a new location with a ribbon cutting at 3:30 p.m. Friday at 1606 N. Kingshighway in Cape Girardeau.

People on the Move

Dr. Richard Tobey

Saint Francis Healthcare System is pleased to welcome board-certified primary care physician and new medical partner Richard Tobey, DO, to Cape Physician Associates.

Dr. Tobey earned his medical degree from Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine in East Lansing. He completed his residence at Firelands Regional Medical Center in Sandusky, Ohio.

Kelli James

Kelli James of Jackson, a financial representative with Modern Woodmen Fraternal Financial, recently completed Kaplan Financial's Needs Analysis Course, a life-insurance needs training course for agents.

James started with Modern Woodmen in July 2018.

Tara Landewee

Tara Landewee of Whitewater, a Modern Woodmen of America representative, has attained the Fraternal Insurance Counselor (FIC) designation.

The FIC title is an educational designation that can be earned by career life insurance representatives associated with fraternal insurance societies. Representatives devote more than one year to meet the examination and career development criteria set by the Fraternal Field Managers Association.

Landewee joined Modern Woodmen in November 2017.

Jana Jateff, senior sales director with Mary Kay Cosmetics, recently earned the use of her 26th free car with the company. Jateff has been with the company for 36 years, according to a recent announcement.

mniederkorn@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3630