Attorney General Chris Carr is recognizing the month of October as Cybersecurity Awareness Month by highlighting his office’s continued efforts to investigate and prosecute cyber-enabled crime through the work of his Prosecution Division and the Georgia Cyber Fraud Task Force. Carr is also sharing important tips and resources to help Georgia consumers, businesses, and organizations protect their data and devices from cyber thieves and fraudsters.
“Phishing scams, data breaches, and malware pose very real threats to Georgia businesses and consumers,” said Carr. “Through the work of our Prosecution Division and the Georgia Cyber Fraud Task Force, we’re continuing our efforts to ensure those who enable cyber-fraud schemes are held accountable for their actions. Now more than ever, it’s imperative that Georgians take proactive steps to protect their data and devices, and our office offers a wealth of information to help start that process.”
Georgia Cyber Fraud Task Force
According to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), Georgians lost more than $322 million to cyber-enabled crime last year alone. Nationwide, those losses topped $10 billion.
Cyber-fraud scams are perpetrated by an entire network of participants who each play an integral role in the success of the operations. One critical actor in these schemes is the “money mule” – the party responsible for opening a U.S. bank account, usually a business account, and accepting proceeds from a variety of frauds. The money mule then forwards the funds as directed, often to accounts overseas.
To aid in the investigation and prosecution of cybercrime, Carr partnered with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia and other local, state, and federal agencies to form the Georgia Cyber Fraud Task Force.
The mission of the Georgia Cyber Fraud Task Force is to identify leads for the investigation of suspected money mules in the Atlanta area and reduce the amount…
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