Rs 22 Crore Gone in a Click: Pharma Giant Alkem Labs Falls Victim to Cyber Fraud
Mumbai: Cyber fraud has sent shockwaves through the pharma sector as Alkem Laboratories, a Mumbai-based pharmaceutical company, recently became a victim of a sophisticated cyber scam, resulting in a loss of Rs 22.31 crore. The perpetrators impersonated officials from Alkem's U.S. subsidiary, Ascend Laboratories LLC, to carry out the fraud.
According to a recent media report in the Hindustan Times, on October 27, 2023, Alkem's Mumbai office received an email purportedly from Amit Ghare, the head of international operations at Ascend Laboratories. The email claimed that Ascend Laboratories would incur substantial taxes on a recent payment made to Alkem.
To avoid these taxes, the email instructed Alkem to refund the amount to a new bank account. Subsequently, on November 17, 2023, another email, allegedly from Mary Smith, Ascend Laboratories' accounting manager, provided details of the U.S.-based bank account for the refund. Acting on these communications, Alkem's treasury manager, Manoj Mishra, transferred Rs 51.30 crore to the specified account via a SWIFT transaction.
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