IT contractor sentenced for cybercrime and fraud offences after swindling more than $60k

Publisher
Australian Federal Police
Date published
March 2024

Relevant impacts: Human impact, Security impact, Financial impact

A Sydney man has been sentenced to 2 years and 6 months imprisonment for swindling more than $66,000 from a dozen victims after abusing his role as an IT contractor with a third-party provider to the Australian National Maritime Museum (ANMM).

The man unlawfully obtained the financial details of several individuals and businesses recorded in ANMM’s systems, which he later used to make fraudulent purchases, including more than $15,000 on 4WD upgrades and mechanical work, and more than $20,000 on high-powered IT equipment.

The ANMM detected irregularities in its financial records in November 2022 and reported the fraudulent activity to the Australian Federal Police (AFP). Members of the AFP Eastern Command Cybercrime Operations team identified the Macquarie Park man as the perpetrator and arrested him at his home in March 2023.

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Related fraudster personas

The Fabricator

The Fabricator invents or produces something that is false to dishonestly gain personal benefits.

The Exploiter

The Exploiter uses something for a wrongful purpose to dishonestly gain personal benefits.

The Impersonator

The Impersonator pretends they are another person or entity to dishonestly gain personal benefits.

Related countermeasures

Authenticate identity

Authenticate customer or third-party identities during each interaction to confirm the person owns the identity record they are trying to access.

Reconcile records

Reconcile records to make sure that 2 sets of records (usually the balances of 2 accounts) match. Reconciling records and accounts can detect if something is different from what is standard, normal, or expected, which may indicate fraud.

Audits or reviews

Internal or external audits or reviews evaluate the process, purpose and outcome of activities. Clients, public officials or contractors can take advantage of weaknesses in government programs and systems to commit fraud, act corruptly, and avoid exposure.

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