Independent Banker - March 2025 - 26

PORTFOLIO
◎FOCUS FRAUD
How to fight AI-boosted
spear phishing fraud
Artificial intelligence has streamlined spear phishing, a kind of cyberattack
involving emails, video calls or other forms of communication facilitated by
fraudsters posing as a trusted colleague, boss or organization. Here's how
your community bank can hit back. By Jen Miller
n 2023, an employee of
multinational design and
engineering company Arup thought
he was just doing what he was told.
During a video call, the chief financial
officer directed him to transfer
$25 million to a specific account.
Except it wasn't really the
company's CFO. Instead, it was a
deepfake created by hackers to trick
the Arup employee. Not only did
the hackers spoof the CFO's image
and voice; they also created digital
replicas of fellow employees to
commit this fraud.
While this is an extreme
example, what happened at Arup
does show that spear phishing
attacks-now enhanced by AI-is a
turbocharged problem.
In 2024, forensics and
identification verification company
Regula found that half of all
businesses have experienced fraud
involving audio and video deepfakes.
They also found that respondent
businesses across industries
and around the globe have lost
nearly $450,000 each, on average,
to deepfakes.
" I don't think community banks
are more or less affected than
anyone else, " says Scott Anchin, vice
president of operational risk and
payments policy for ICBA, " but it's
certainly a growing concern. "
AI adds fuel to the fire
Spear phishing is when a hacker takes
someone's personal information-
usually willingly shared on social
media-and tailors an email directly
to them. Unlike blanket scams sent to
millions with the hope that someone
will click, these are designed with a
specific person in mind.
Through these attacks, hackers
are most likely trying to collect
someone's sensitive information,
says Kinny Chan, chief commercial
I
26 // ICBA Independent Banker // March 2025
Illustration by Tomasknopp/Adobe

Independent Banker - March 2025

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Independent Banker - March 2025

Independent Banker - March 2025 - Intro
Independent Banker - March 2025 - Cover1
Independent Banker - March 2025 - Cover2
Independent Banker - March 2025 - 1
Independent Banker - March 2025 - 2
Independent Banker - March 2025 - 3
Independent Banker - March 2025 - 4
Independent Banker - March 2025 - 5
Independent Banker - March 2025 - 6
Independent Banker - March 2025 - 7
Independent Banker - March 2025 - 8
Independent Banker - March 2025 - 9
Independent Banker - March 2025 - 10
Independent Banker - March 2025 - 11
Independent Banker - March 2025 - 12
Independent Banker - March 2025 - 13
Independent Banker - March 2025 - 14
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Independent Banker - March 2025 - 26
Independent Banker - March 2025 - 27
Independent Banker - March 2025 - 28
Independent Banker - March 2025 - 29
Independent Banker - March 2025 - 30
Independent Banker - March 2025 - 31
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Independent Banker - March 2025 - 34
Independent Banker - March 2025 - 35
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Independent Banker - March 2025 - 42
Independent Banker - March 2025 - 43
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Independent Banker - March 2025 - 65
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Independent Banker - March 2025 - Cover3
Independent Banker - March 2025 - Cover4
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