SAN JOSE, Calif. (KRON) — Police said Tuesday that scammers hacked email accounts and posed as employees of companies to steal $500,000 from victims.
According to the San Jose Police Department, the victims were tricked into committing a “business email compromise.” “Business email compromise occurs when a suspect hacks into a business’ email account. The suspect then sends updated payment information to the business’s customers, effectively redirecting the payment to the suspect’s account,” Officer Tanya Hernandez with the San Jose Police Department wrote.
Fraud investigators identified the email hacker as Aleida Torres, a 51-year-old Pennsylvania woman who remains at large and is wanted on a theft charge, police said.
Torres allegedly instructed the victim to wire a $500,000 invoice in January, and Hernandez said the victim didn’t realize he’d been scammed until the wire transfer was completed.
Detectives said they recovered $400,000 of the stolen funds.
Aleida Torres is wanted by San Jose Police on a theft charge. (SJPD Image)
Business email compromise has become more common over the last few years.
“In some cases, many of the perpetrators are based overseas. The San Jose Police Department Financial Crimes Unit would like to remind the public of the importance of implementing cybersecurity measures when conducting business online,” Hernandez wrote.
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To report financial crimes such as forgery, fraud or identity theft, fill out an online crime/incident report form or call 408-277-8900.
