Latest Fraud Headlines
All the headlines from our Fraud Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Ransomware Criminals Are Dumping Kids’ Private Files Online After School Hacks
Jul 7 2023 // The confidential documents stolen from schools and dumped online by ransomware gangs are raw, intimate and graphic. They describe student sexual assaults, psychiatric hospitalizations, abusive parents, truancy — even...
California Insurance Broker Arraigned for Allegedly Stealing from Small Businesses
Jul 7 2023 // Brian Keith Arteaga, 39, of Placentia, California, was arraigned this week on multiple felony counts of grand theft by embezzlement, theft of fiduciary funds, insurance fraud, and money laundering after a California...
Panama Expects to Be Removed From Financial Crime Watch List in October
Jul 6 2023 // Panama expects international financial-crime watchdog FATF to remove it this October from a watch list for nations deemed to be doing too little to fight money laundering, the country’s deputy finance minister said,...
11 People Charged in Alleged $8M Delaware Valley Catalytic Converter Theft Ring
Jul 6 2023 // A Philadelphia towing firm and 10 adults one juvenile have been charged in what prosecutors say is a multi-million dollar theft ring that targeted catalytic converters in the Delaware Valley region. Bucks County District...
Theft is on the Rise: Is your construction site secure?
Jul 5 2023 // This post is part of a series sponsored by IAT Insurance Group. Here are two true claims stories: In Dallas, a 2018 Lincoln Ranger Welder and tools in a 20-foot container were stolen from an elementary school jobsite....
Beware of Bond Fraud
Jul 3 2023 // This post is part of a series sponsored by Old Republic Surety. It’s fortunately rare, but when bond fraud happens, it can be devastating. As a bond producer developing a book of surety business, you must be vigilant...
Missouri Man Pleads Guilty to $1.1M Insurance Fraud Scheme
Jul 3 2023 // A Missouri man has pleaded guilty in federal court to his role in a $1.1 million insurance fraud conspiracy that involved false claims of injuries suffered in car accidents, as well as to his role in a conspiracy to...
Kentucky Official Pleads Guilty to Crop Insurance Fraud
Jun 30 2023 // A central Kentucky farmer who is also a county official has changed his plea, admitting to charges of crop insurance fraud. Randall Taulbee, a Bourbon County magistrate, pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to...
Texas Insurance Agent and Former Elgin Mayor Pleads Guilty to Felony Theft Charge
Jun 30 2023 // A Texas insurance who previously served as mayor of Elgin pleaded guilty June 20 to theft of property, a third-degree felony. Christopher Cannon, 38, acquired payments from the company Baker’s Backhoe Services...
Report: US Lacks Comprehensive Cybercrime Data
Jun 30 2023 // The United States lacks comprehensive cybercrime data and monitoring – leaving the country less prepared to combat cybercrime, according to a June report by the United States Government Accountability office. Federal...
California Insurance Commissioner Awards $50M in Grants to Fight Fraud
Jun 30 2023 // California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara awarded $50,545,239 in grants to 34 district attorney offices representing 44 counties in the state to combat insurance fraud. The grants, funded through annual employer...
GEICO Suit Alleges $1.8M in Fraudulent Billings by New Jersey Healthcare Providers
Jun 30 2023 // Insurer GEICO is suing to recover more than $1.8 million in allegedly fraudulent and unlawful no-fault insurance charges it says it has paid to several New Jersey health centers since 2018. The charges were for a range of...
ChatGPT Creator OpenAI Sued for Theft of Private Data in ‘AI Arms Race’
Jun 29 2023 // ChatGPT creator OpenAI Inc. is stealing “vast amounts” of personal information to train its artificial intelligence models in a heedless hunt for profits, a group of anonymous individuals claimed in a lawsuit...
Florida Police: Theft Ring Targeted Luxury Cars Using Fake VINs, Phony Insurance
Jun 29 2023 // Florida law enforcement pushed back this week against a nationwide surge in auto thefts, announcing that 23 people were arrested for their alleged participation in a crime ring that forged vehicle identification numbers...
DA’s Office Charges California Contractors with Workers’ Comp Fraud and Conspiracy
Jun 28 2023 // Individuals from two construction companies in California’s Bay Area were arraigned on charges of conspiring to misclassify workers to avoid paying workers’ compensation insurance, payroll taxes and insurance...
Ex-Audi Boss Becomes 1st VW Board Member Sentenced for Fraud in Diesel Scandal
Jun 27 2023 // Former Audi boss Rupert Stadler was handed a suspended sentence of one year and nine months by a Munich court on Tuesday for fraud in the 2015 diesel scandal, becoming the first former Volkswagen board member to receive...
Supreme Court Rejects Lawsuit Accusing Google of Stealing Millions of Song Lyrics
Jun 26 2023 // The US Supreme Court refused to revive a lawsuit by music website Genius Media Group Inc. accusing Alphabet Inc.’s Google of stealing millions of song lyrics. The justices left in place a ruling that tossed out the...
Personal Data of 700K Retired California Workers And Beneficiaries Stolen
Jun 23 2023 // California pension officials say personal information of about 769,000 retired state employees and other beneficiaries – including Social Security numbers – was among data stolen by Russian cybercriminals in...
Appeals Court Upholds Lindberg Fraud Judgment But Orders Damages to Be Determined
Jun 22 2023 // Former insurance executive and businessman Greg Lindberg was found liable for fraud in 2022 in connection with his insolvent insurance companies, but the North Carolina county court did not award damages. Lindberg...
Construction Owners Accused of Submitting Fraudulent Bonds for New York Storm Projects
Jun 20 2023 // Federal officials report they have charged two construction company owners with submitting fraudulent bonds in connection with storm recovery and reconstruction projects in New York. Rawinder Dhillon and Amninder Singh...
