The $2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act will provide economic relief to millions of businesses and taxpayers during the coronavirus pandemic. This stimulus bill may recall the last time government injected a huge sum of money into the U.S. economy— via the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, following the 2008 mortgage crisis. But this time, the fraud risks are far more extensive due to the emergence of cyber crime.
The cyber fraud landscape has evolved significantly since 2009. Today there is a booming dark web underground market online, where criminals buy and sell identities, handbooks for how to commit fraud, forged documents and more. New, highly sophisticated cyber fraud schemes use techniques like phishing, deepfake voice spoofing, and notoriously effective malware that can “brute force” into vulnerable IT systems.