banking4 articles
River Bank Paid Ransomware Crew to Delete Stolen Data. Trust Them on That.
River Bank & Trust suffered a ransomware attack on June 16, in which hackers accessed portions of its network and exfiltrated data, prompting the company to take affected systems offline and disable compromised accounts. The bank engaged with the threat actors and obtained representations that the stolen data had been deleted, likely following a ransom payment. The investigation is ongoing, and River has yet to determine whether personal information was stolen or whether the incident will materially impact its business.
American Bank Trusts Ransomware Gang's Pinky Promise to Delete Stolen Data
A US bank used the unusual term "removed" in its data breach disclosure, rather than the more common terms like "stolen," "copied," or "accessed." The wording implies the bank may be suggesting the ransomware group actually deleted the data rather than retaining it — essentially trusting the criminals' promise to dispose of it. The article highlights how the language used in breach disclosures is often carefully chosen, ranging from vague to misleading, to downplay the true nature of what occurred.
Banks Still Treating MFA as Optional. Your Money Pays the Price.
The author recounts how their 84-year-old mother lost $30,000 to thieves who exploited her reused passwords and lack of multi-factor authentication (MFA) to access her bank accounts, retirement savings, and Gmail. Despite many banks and Google offering MFA, they make it optional rather than mandatory, prioritising user convenience and avoiding friction over customer security. The article argues that financial institutions should require stronger, phishing-resistant MFA — such as passkeys — by default across all platforms, as optional security measures leave the majority of users dangerously exposed.
NFCShare Malware Evolves: Fake Banking App Updates Delivered Via GitHub
A new Android malware called NFCShare is being distributed through fake banking app updates hosted on GitHub, targeting customers of banks primarily in Italy and Spain. The malware tricks victims into scanning their payment cards near their phone's NFC chip under the guise of a security verification, stealing card details and PINs which are then sent to attackers for use in NFC payment relay fraud. Android users are advised to only download banking apps from Google Play, enable Play Protect, and be wary of any requests to scan their cards through an app.