All posts tagged: fraud

Mastercard spent decades training its fraud system to see bots as thieves. Now bots are the ones doing the buying.

Mastercard spent decades training its fraud system to see bots as thieves. Now bots are the ones doing the buying.

Published by skeptic

Every time a Mastercard gets tapped, the network has less than a tenth of a second to judge how likely the purchase is to be fraudulent. It made that call across 175 billion transactions last year. Now the buyer on the other side of that judgment is starting to change, and Greg Ulrich, the company’s chief AI and data officer, spelled out the consequence for the VB Transform 2026 audience in Menlo Park on July 14. “We’ve built a bunch of risk rules over time that were intended to stop a bot from transacting,” Ulrich said. “Now we need to enable the bot to transact, so that requires a change to our risk framework and our risk rules.” Ulrich joined Mastercard eleven years ago when an analytics company he worked at was acquired, and said trust struck him from day one on the job. “It’s what enables a merchant that’s never met you to accept payment and ensure that they’re going to get paid. It’s what enables you as a consumer to transact and ensure …

Former Golden Globes Owners Sue Penske Media Alleging Fraud in Acquisition of Awards Show

Former Golden Globes Owners Sue Penske Media Alleging Fraud in Acquisition of Awards Show

Published by Sam Flores

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Members of the Hollywood Foreign Press, which founded and for decades owned the Golden Globe Awards, have sued Penske Media Corporation and others, alleging they engaged in fraud to acquire the valuable awards show in an attempt to create an entertainment industry monopoly. The lawsuit filed in federal court in California on Tuesday alleges that Penske Media and owner Jay Penske colluded with holding company Eldridge Industries and its CEO Todd Boehly to fuel a backlash and boycott against the Globes to devalue it and acquire it, and to deceive the HFPA about a sale they were pressured into accepting. “This case arises from a clandestine scheme to fraudulently acquire the prestigious and valuable 80-year-old Golden Globe Awards,” the lawsuit says, “and exert monopolistic control over the Hollywood trades, awards, and advertising markets, all in violation of state and federal unfair competition and antitrust laws.” It alleges Boehly and Eldridge hid the involvement of Penske in the 2023 deal from the HFPA board, which never would have approved it if they …

Artworks by Basquiat, George Condo, caught in Vancouver fraud lawsuit

Artworks by Basquiat, George Condo, caught in Vancouver fraud lawsuit

Published by Jenni Sidey

There is a new development in an ongoing fraud lawsuit against the leader of the collapsed Vancouver-based developer Coromandel Properties, whose chief executive allegedly misappropriated funds to acquire an art collection, reports The Vancouver Sun. In 2023, Junchao Mo, a Chinese seed investor and part-owner of Coromandel Properties, and his two sons, Zhao Ming “Robert” Mo and Zi Hao “Calvin” Mo, filed a lawsuit now headed to the Supreme Court of British Columbia against Jerry Zhong, the company’s chief executive and co-owner. They allege that Zhong deceived them into investing over $100 million in the company’s Vancouver-area real estate projects, and deliberately misused those funds to purchase property, feed his own slush fund, and, among other expenditures, acquire 14 artworks worth about $4.9 million. Related Articles The plaintiffs argue that the art acquisitions were then used to secure a loan of up to $2.4 million, while Coromandel Properties, now indebted by some $497 million, was already in financial hot water. Zhong “misappropriated the line of credit funds for his own use,” according to court documents, …

Ken Paxton has long crusaded against voter fraud. His Senate rival now accuses him of committing it.

Ken Paxton has long crusaded against voter fraud. His Senate rival now accuses him of committing it.

Published by Sam Flores

The Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in Texas is trying to turn a key talking point of his Republican opponent against him — alleging Attorney General Ken Paxton is guilty of the same type of voter fraud he has spent years trying to eliminate. “As our state’s attorney general, Ken Paxton has gone on a voter fraud witch hunt,” state Rep. James Talarico, who is challenging Paxton in the race to replace U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, said during a campaign event in Houston. “Turns out, he was committing voter fraud the whole time, voting illegally in six elections in a row from the wrong address.” Talarico’s comments come after ProPublica and The Texas Tribune revealed that Paxton moved out of the home he shared with his wife, state Sen. Angela Paxton, in 2024 but continued to vote using that address, including during the March Republican primary in which he beat Cornyn. Three election experts told the news organizations that Paxton may have broken state law.  Last week, the Collin County Democratic Party filed a complaint …

Deep State In “Fight To The Death” To Defend Voter Fraud

Deep State In “Fight To The Death” To Defend Voter Fraud

Published by Jenni Sidey

Via Greg Hunter’s USAWatchdog.com, Journalist Alex Newman is an expert on the so-called Deep State.  He is the author of the longtime popular book “Deep State” and, most recently, “Deep State 2.0.”  The Deep State is not a conspiracy theory.  It is a conspiracy fact.  This year, the Deep State will be going to war with the Trump Administration to hold onto the voter fraud that has won them elections for many years.  Without voter fraud, Deep State Democrats lose and lose big in the midterms.  They are fighting every way they can to keep the cheating going.   The Trump Administration is threatening fines and jail time if the Dems in Blue States “Refuse to Cooperate to Secure Elections.”  It is so bad that Harvard PhD and political expert Dr. Jerome Corsi says President Trump must “Stop Voter Fraud or Lose the Republic.”  The fight is going to get much more intense and violent before the midterm elections in November.  Alex Newman says: “Voter integrity is one of the arenas where this fight to the death is taking place.  We are going …

GB News pundit Matthew Torbitt pleads guilty to fraud while Labour aide

GB News pundit Matthew Torbitt pleads guilty to fraud while Labour aide

Published by Sam Flores

A GB News pundit has admitted fraud in relation to his parliamentary expenses when he was a Labour aide. Matthew Torbitt, a prominent political commentator who once described himself as “Britain’s favourite lefty”, pleaded guilty to two counts of fraud by false representation at a hearing at Thames magistrates court on Monday. During a brief appearance the 35-year-old, dressed in a navy blue suit and an orange tie, spoke only to confirm his name, date of birth, address and guilty plea. The offences occurred between 2022 and 2024, when Torbitt was working for Christian Wakeford, the MP for Bury South. The court heard that Torbitt, who claims to champion “positive social change”, obtained free rail tickets and accommodation for trips that did not relate to parliamentary business. Maisha Mannan, prosecuting, said the rail tickets were booked between 23 August 2022 and 29 September 2024 via the parliamentary travel system. She said on 2 October 2024 Torbitt submitted a separate claim for reimbursement of travel and accommodation expenses. The court heard that the claims totalled more …

‘I never thought I’d fall for a scam’: the fake Spotify emails that put you at risk of fraud | Money

‘I never thought I’d fall for a scam’: the fake Spotify emails that put you at risk of fraud | Money

Published by Sam Flores

You have had a Spotify account for years and your credit card is linked for the monthly payments. When an email arrives telling you that your payment couldn’t be processed you are not surprised as the expiry date on the card is soon. “We encountered an issue while processing your recent payment,” it says. “To keep your access active and avoid interruption, please review and update your information.” All you need to do, according to the email, is click the button to “update payment method”. “This only takes a moment and helps ensure uninterrupted access to your account and services.” When you click the link you are taken to what you think is Spotify and you are asked to log in and then enter your new card details, your address and phone number. Unfortunately, the email is not from Spotify and the link takes you to a cloned scam site that collects your login, personal and payment details, which criminals then immediately try to use for online purchases. “I saw the email on my phone …

AI image fraud will cost billion next year – can these international standards help?

AI image fraud will cost $40 billion next year – can these international standards help?

Published by skeptic

The Washington Post via Getty Images Follow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google. ZDNET’s key takeaways AI or real? Images now have a credibility problem.  Standards to help identify AI images proposed by EIC and ISO. JPEG Trust represents the first steps toward image authentication. International standards bodies are stepping up efforts to help provide the tools that end users and companies need to distinguish real images, videos, and other content from deepfakes and AI-generated slop. New standards were recently announced at the AI for Good conference hosted in Geneva under the auspices of the UN.  Also: Google Search will let you instantly generate AI images for free – here’s how A credibility crisis has arisen, and it’s only getting worse when it comes to imagery, reaching the point where one can no longer distinguish between actual photos and AI-generated fakes. This has implications across society and businesses, raising doubts about the authenticity of images used in news reports, social media postings, and even photographic evidence in crime scenes. There’s a huge financial cost …

Modi vows ‘stringent punishment’ for exam fraud fuelling India’s youth-led ‘Cockroach’ protests

Modi vows ‘stringent punishment’ for exam fraud fuelling India’s youth-led ‘Cockroach’ protests

Published by Sam Flores

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi vowed on Thursday “stringent punishment” for those involved in exam fraud that has fuelled student anger, in his first direct comments tied to major protests challenging his government. The comments came after thousands of protesters, led by the social media-driven Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) movement, rallied in New Delhi on Wednesday, triggering fresh clashes with the police. Read moreIndian police baton-charge ‘Cockroach Party’ protesters marching to parliament “Nothing is more important than the welfare and future of our youth,” he said in a social media post, promising to set up fast-track courts to punish those involved in question paper leaks. “Those who try to harm the future of our youth will not be spared,” he added. The protesters, mostly young students, have been demanding the resignation of the education minister over exam paper leaks since last month. Protests snowballed on Monday after police fired tear gas and baton-charged tens of thousands of demonstrators as they tried to march to parliament on the opening day of the monsoon session. As tensions …

Ex Southern Water bosses face criminal charges over sewage leaks | UK | News

Ex Southern Water bosses face criminal charges over sewage leaks | UK | News

Published by Sam Flores

A sign at Margate Main Sands informing people not to use the beach (Image: Environment Agency) The former chief executive of Southern Water has been charged with conspiracy to defraud authorities over allegations he was involved in a plan to manipulate water quality tests to avoid millions of pounds in penalties. Matthew Wright and three other former employees have been accused of conspiring to defraud the Environment Agency (EA) and water regulator Ofwat. They are accused of manipulating the Operator Self-Monitoring (OSM) compliance testing regime which requires water firms to to take samples at their wastewater treatment works and report the results to the EA. The EA previously asked a judge to issue a summons against Wright, as well as Philip Barker, Clive Massey and Mark Gregory, who also worked at the company, charging them with the offence. The summons was issued last year, but Wright then launched a legal challenge over the move, with his lawyers telling the High Court in June that the EA did not have the power to issue it and …