Alaska Advisory on Email Account Scams and Cybercrime Protection

Alaska DBS - News and Alerts

Published June 30th, 2022

Detected March 19th, 2026

Summary

The Alaska Division of Banking and Securities issued an advisory to consumers and businesses regarding email account scams and cybercrime protection. The notice highlights threats to financial accounts, including fraudulent payroll changes and unauthorized wire transfers, and provides resources for protection.

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What changed

The Alaska Division of Banking and Securities has issued an advisory to alert consumers and businesses about increasing threats from email account scams and cybercrime. The advisory details instances of fraud initiated via email, such as requests for payroll deposit changes and intercepted wire transfers, often involving subtle typos in sender information. The Division emphasizes that these funds are frequently unrecoverable and stresses the importance of awareness and verification before altering financial transaction details.

Regulated entities and consumers are advised to exercise increased scrutiny over any financial transaction or decision based on an email. Key protective measures include always contacting the original source directly before changing direct deposit or wire fund instructions. The advisory also provides links to resources from the FBI, FinCEN, the Alaska Department of Law, and the FTC for further information on business email compromise, phishing, and wire fraud. Entities with questions are encouraged to contact the Division of Banking and Securities.

What to do next

Review internal procedures for handling changes to direct deposit or wire transfer instructions.
Educate employees and customers about email account scams and cybercrime protection measures.
Verify all financial transaction requests received via email by contacting the source through a known, trusted channel.

Source document (simplified)

Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development DIVISION OF BANKING AND SECURITIES Anchorage Office 550 W 7th Ave Suite 1850 Anchorage, AK 99501 Main: 907.269-8140 Toll free: 888.925.2521 CONSUMER AND BUSINESS ADVISORY PROTECTING YOUR BANK AND CREDIT UNION ACCOUNTS E-mail Account Compromise Wednesday, June 30, 2022 (Anchorage) — The Alaska Division of Banking and Securities (Division) today issued an advisory to help consumers and businesses better understand the potential threats to their financial accounts and how to protect themselves from cybercriminals. In recent weeks, the Division has been contacted by victims of fraud which was initiated via e-mail. In one case, the e-mail was purported to be from an employee requesting a change to where their payroll is deposited. In another, an email was intercepted and used to initiate wiring funds to a fraudulent account. At first glance, these emails appeared normal but further investigation found a minor change such as one letter typo in a name or email address that was not easy to identify. In many cases these funds are not recoverable which is why awareness is the most important tool in protecting yourself and your business. Always contact the source before changing the way you would normally direct deposit or wire funds to an account. Below are several resources to learn more about this and other types of fraud. This information is shared to raise your awareness and provide additional reading recommendations so that you can keep your business and personal funds safe from bad actors. - The Federal Bureau of Investigation Business Email Compromise — FBI Spoofing and Phishing — FBI - The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network has an advisory geared toward cybersecurity experts and other departments that address risk at: https://www.fincen.gov/resources/advisories/fincen-advisory-fin-2016-a003 - Alaska Department of Law’s Consumer Protection Unit has a wide range of information on frauds and scams at: https://law.alaska.gov/department/civil/consumer/cpindex.html - The Federal Trade Commission https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/you-wire-money https://consumer.ftc.gov/scams Any time you are conducting a financial transaction or decision based on an email, please protect yourself and give it additional scrutiny. Before making financial decisions, ask questions, do your homework, and contact the Alaska Division of Banking and Securities at (907) 269-8140 or financialinstitutions@alaska.gov if you have additional questions.