In the “Weekly Round-Up” we summarise and give extra reading suggestions for some of the past weeks financial crime news headlines, powered by Acuminor’s crime universe ThreatView® .
We are nearing the end of October. There has been a lot of valuable information flowing past me so far this month and I want to share some highlights from the past week. We are still lingering in the cyber security month so let’s start with a few articles from cyberspace.
Cyber-attacks on infrastructure
For many years, cyber security firms and governments have warned about cyber-attacks on critical infrastructure. The bits and pieces that control information in industrial systems have quite a few flaws and are vulnerable to attacks. This year we have seen several ransomware attacks targeting hospitals, schools, the energy sector, and the food industry. The Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency has released a joint advisory on ongoing attacks on the US water/wastewater system.
Gaming-related scams
Two interesting articles caught my eyes, touching on the adaptability and displacement of criminals. During Covid, a lot of young people took to video games to nurture social networks and activities. So did the criminals. There has been an increase in gaming-related scams.
The Guardian – From Fortnite to Fifa, online video game players warned of rise in fraud
In Mexico, the Cartels also need to recruit new resources into their ranks. By befriending young people during gameplay in online games, cartels are trying to find new ways to exploit young children.
Insight Crime – How Mexico’s Cartels Use Video Games to Recruit Children
Various reports
One of the best reports from this month was an extensive report from Global Financial Integrity who has studied “Financial Crime in Latin America and the Caribbean”. It contains country summaries, case studies, regional analysis on crime activities and financial crime typologies.
And to sum it up with two reports looking towards the future;
Global initiative has released a report that identifies five scenarios for the future of international criminal justice cooperation based on observed trends.
Global Initiative – The future of international cooperation against transnational organized crime
Fresh off the press, The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) has released the first-ever National Intelligence Estimate on Climate Change. Now it might not directly cover the topics of money laundering and terrorist financing. However, climate change will have a significant impact on the evolution of crime overall.
If you want more daily updates on what we pick up around the world regarding crime and typologies, head over to ThreatView to access our analysis on crime, components and how they connect to each other.
