Sabat Age Consulting received an email from the web form located on our website notifying us that someone wanted to purchase 50 laptops from us. Since we don’t do hardware sales, and it was likely SPAM, I was going to ignore it, but due to the size of the order and sheer curiosity, I decided to pursue it cautiously.
The contact appeared to be from EmblemHealth, so I emailed them back and then called the company directly. I spoke to a guy, with a foreign accent, and asked him a few questions. I then looked him up on LinkedIn and saw that this person was actually showing as the procurement manager at EmblemHealth in NYC. However the picture, lets just say it did not fit the accent I heard. Anyway, I reached out to Dell to get a quote, and explained to them that I didn’t know the person who reached out and that the situation seemed to be a bit fishy. Since it was Dell’s exposure, I let them know that if they wanted to place the order, they could, but I wouldn’t if I were them. Dell sent me a quote and I sent it to the guy who inquired. He then told me that he would have to get it approved by his finance department. After only 15 minutes he tells me that it was approved and he wants to place the order with net 45 day terms. This of course is another BIG red flag.
I returned back to LinkedIn and I reach out to the EmblemHealth employee that the emailer claimed to be so I can confirm if that’s who I’m actually speaking with. He replies back and says he has NOT been emailing me about a laptop order. He asked me to send him the email correspondence to his separate company email address. I then got an email from the Cyber Security Director of EmblemHealth. I gave him some more information and told him that I noticed that their email was emblemhealths.com (they added an “s” to the name) but if I went to the website they sent me, it forwards to the legit EmblemHealth website. This was a very good fake! Furthermore, the thief used the same name and title as the guy i found on LinkedIn to make it look even more authentic. The Cyber Security Director from EmblemHealth told me that he contacted the domain registrar and took down their website, domain, and email hosting immediately.
I went back to Dell and told them not to do the order, as it was confirmed as fraudulent. The Dell representative wrote a Google review stating that due to my diligent research, I saved her from a loss of over $80,000 in fraudulent orders!
Always be aware of who may be emailing you. Be sure to double check for any spelling errors or unusual wording. Sabat Age Consulting is here to help you with any cyberthreat activity you may have. If you get an uneasy feeling please reach out and let us help you before you become a cybercriminal’s next victim.
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