The worm on Goossen's machine allowed thieves to log onto the website of the auto dealer's bank using Goossen's credentials and set up a second payroll batch for the usual amount for nine non-existent employees. The additional payroll was sent out overnight by First Bank.
The software allowed the hackers to grab Goossen's e-mail password and banking details. All they had to do was change the notification e-mail address to a name under their control.
Gun-Toting Robbers
When an amount like Green Ford's $63,000 is taken from a bank by gun-toting robbers, the FBI would typically dispatch special agents to cordon off the crime scene and interview witnesses. No agents arrived in Abilene on Nov. 4, and no one at the company was ever interviewed by the bureau about the theft.
Green Ford's owner, Lease Duckwall, filled out a report with local police, who don't have a cybercrime unit. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation examined his computer and found nothing of use. Frustrated, Duckwall turned detective, interviewing bank employees, victims of similar crimes and whoever knew anything about cybertheft. In the end, the trail went cold.
Representatives of the FBI and the Secret Service insist they are not overwhelmed.
"I don't think it's right to conclude that because there are not a lot of arrests that law enforcement is not doing its job," said Gordon Snow, the FBI's assistant director of the cyber division.
Fighting Cybercrime
The FBI and Secret Service have increased the number of agents dedicated to fighting cybercrime. Last September, as part of "Operation Trident Beach," U.S. prosecutors in Manhattan arrested a gang of money mules in connection with a wide-ranging cyberfraud ring that had stolen $70 million from banks and tried to grab another $150 million in the U.S. and Western Europe. No ringleader was arrested, even though five were questioned by police in Ukraine, according to the FBI.
The inability to put handcuffs on suspects in Eastern Europe is a source of frustration for law enforcement, according to representatives of the FBI and Secret Service.