Phishing Attack Targets Journalist After LancasterOnline's Adam Kidan Story
LancasterOnline.com recently reported on a concerning incident involving wealthy businessman and major Republican donor Adam Kidan. The story, published in September 2023, was followed by a phishing attempt targeting the author, Brett Sholtis, raising alarm bells about the tactics used by cybercriminals.
The phishing attempt, known as a 'thread hijacking' attack, is a common strategy where employees are tricked into performing actions that benefit the attacker. In this case, the emails appeared to be part of an ongoing conversation, with attachments that led to a fake Microsoft Outlook login page. The recipient's natural curiosity and the lack of urgency in the emails contributed to their success. LancasterOnline's Executive Editor Tom Murse found the attempt confusing due to the sender's identity and prominence.
Investigations into the incident have been slow. The FBI has not responded to LancasterOnline's tip, and messages to Kidan's company went unreturned. Meanwhile, a person named John Smith had their Microsoft email account muted and was likely used to send similar phishing emails to contacts from their address book. To avoid such scams, it's crucial not to click on links or attachments in unsolicited emails and to manually visit sites or services using bookmarks.
Adam Kidan, the target of the LancasterOnline story, has a criminal past. In 2006, he was sentenced to 70 months in federal prison for defrauding lenders alongside Jack Abramoff and was paroled in 2009. Multi-persona phishing scams, involving multiple threat actors conversing while copying the recipient, increase the likelihood of success.
The incident highlights the evolving tactics of cybercriminals and the importance of vigilance in online communication. As businesses and individuals continue to rely on digital platforms, understanding and mitigating these threats becomes increasingly crucial. Despite the ongoing investigation, the incident serves as a stark reminder of the potential dangers lurking in our inboxes.
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