Monday, November 9, 2015



Complete DHS Report for November 9, 2015

Daily Report                                            

Top Stories

 • A former JPMorgan Chase & Co. broker pleaded guilty to securities fraud and embezzlement November 5 for defrauding 10 of his clients out of more than $20 million by withdrawing hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars from their accounts. – Bloomberg News See item 5 below in the Financial Services Sector

 • Two men pleaded guilty November 4 to stealing up to $1.5 million in food stamp benefits at their Massachusetts bodega by charging customers paying with Electronic Benefit Transfer for more than the items they purchased. – Boston Herald

15. November 5, Boston Herald – (Massachusetts) Dad, son plead guilty in EBT scam. Two men pleaded guilty November 4 to stealing between $1 million and $1.5 million in food stamp benefits at their Lawrence bodega, Bonao Market, by charging customers paying with Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) for more than the items they purchased. The pair would then pocket a portion of the excess cash. Source: http://www.bostonherald.com/news/local_coverage/2015/11/dad_son_plead_guilty_in_ebt_scam

 • About 200 firefighters remained on site for about 8 hours November 5 after a fire at the Acorn Design & Manufacturing facility in Pennsylvania caused approximately $1 million in damages. – LancasterOnline.com

20. November 6, LancasterOnline.com – (Pennsylvania) Damage from fire that destroyed Acorn Design & Manufacturing will top $1 million. Approximately 200 firefighters remained on site for about 8 hours November 5 after a fire began at the Acorn Design & Manufacturing facility that caused approximately $1 million in damages. All employees were evacuated and no injuries were reported. Source: http://lancasteronline.com/news/local/blaze-engulfs-acorn-design-manufacturing/article_9cbabcd4-8424-11e5-ae9c-e72187e93549.html

 • Newark, New Jersey officials condemned four housing properties owned by Virginia-based Realty Management Associates November 5 after determining that the buildings were a public safety issue and a public health issue. – Newark Star-Ledger

23. November 5, Newark Star-Ledger – (New York) Newark cracks down on ‘slumlords’, condemns rodent, bedbug-infested buildings. Newark officials condemned 4 housing properties owned by Virginia-based Realty Management Associates including Aspen Stratford Apartments November 5 after deeming the buildings were a public safety issue and a public health issue following traces of rat infestation, mold, collapsed ceilings, and water leakage. Approximately 100 residents were relocated to new housing units. Source: http://www.nj.com/essex/index.ssf/2015/11/newark_condemns_4_rodent_bedbug_invested_slums.html

Financial Services Sector

4. November 6, KSWB 69 San Diego – (California) ‘Hipster Bandit’ hits 3rd bank. Authorities are searching for a suspect known as the ‘Hipster Bandit’ who reportedly robbed three bank branches in San Diego, with the most recent heist taking place at a Wells Fargo banking desk inside a Vons store November 2. The suspect allegedly robbed U.S. Bank branches in Albertsons supermarkets July 2 and September 25, and usually hands the teller a demand note. Source: http://fox5sandiego.com/2015/11/05/hipster-bandit-hits-3rd-bank/

5. November 5, Bloomberg News – (National) JPMorgan broker faces up to 50 years for $20 million scam. A former JPMorgan Chase & Co. broker pleaded guilty to securities fraud and embezzlement November 5 for defrauding 10 of his clients out of more than $20 million by withdrawing hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars from their accounts with the promise of investment into low-risk municipal bonds. The suspect never invested the money and used it for personal expenses. Source: http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20151105/FINANCE/151109924/jpmorgan-broker-faces-up-to-50-years-for-20-million-scam

6. November 4, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of New York – (New York) New York attorney and two registered brokers arrested for engaging in a $300 million market manipulation scheme. Federal and State authorities reported November 4 that the founder of Ofsink LLC and the managing director of Halcyon Cabot Partners, Ltd., and a registered broker were arrested for their roles in a $300 million market manipulation scheme where the trio, along with 7 other co-conspirators took part in the scheme to mislead securities markets and the public through false and misleading press releases and manipulated trading activity. Source: https://www.fbi.gov/newyork/press-releases/2015/new-york-attorney-and-two-registered-brokers-arrested-for-engaging-in-a-300-million-market-manipulation-scheme

Information Technology Sector

16. November 5, Help Net Security – (International) Firefox 42 is out, with many privacy and security improvements. Mozilla released Firefox 42 addressing several security patches including a new feature named Tracking Protection that actively blocks contents like ads, analytics trackers, requests from active trackers, and social share buttons that may record users’ activity and send personal information without their knowledge across multiple Web sites. Source: http://www.net-security.org/secworld.php?id=19071

17. November 5, Threatpost – (International) Updated Cryptowall encrypts file names, mocks victims. Researchers from both Bleeping Computer and an independent researcher discovered that the Cryptowall malware was recently updated to encrypt data on victims’ machines and file names, making infected files difficult to recover without paying a ransom. The ransomware infects victims via email attachments, disguised as Microsoft Word documents, through JavaScript executable. Source: https://threatpost.com/updated-cryptowall-encrypts-file-names-mocks-victims/115285/

Communications Sector
 
18. November 6, Bluefield Daily Telegraph – (West Virginia) Cable theft disrupts Internet for thousands of customers. Frontier Communications representatives reported November 5 that thieves seeking copper, cut fiber optic cables that caused 4,000 customers in McDowell County to experience an Internet and phone service outage that impacted 9-1-1 services. Officials are investigating the incident and crews restored service.

19. November 6, The Register – (National) Fake IT admin tricked Cox rep into handing over customer database – cableco fined $600K. The U.S. Federal Communications Commission fined Cox Communications for $595,000 November 5 for allegations that the company failed to provide adequate security for its customer database and failed to notify the Federal government after a 2014 security breach in which a Lizard Squad hacker accessed customer records and leaked partial information on 8 customers and changed the passwords of 28 others while disguised as an employee in the Intelligence Technology (IT) department. The hacker had control over customer billing information including names, addresses, payment data, and even partial social security numbers and State identification numbers. Source: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2015/11/06/fcc_cox_data_breach/