Cyber fraud: a question of trust

Cyber fraud is without doubt the biggest commercial and legal threat now facing businesses and individuals around the world. Attacks are typically carried out in four ways: (i) the corruption or coercion of staff (inside jobs); (ii) the use of malware to hijack a corporate computer network; (iii) the hijacking of computer systems used by third party suppliers; and (iv) ‘phishing’ scams. The risk is interdependent, local and cross-border, commercial, financial and personal to virtually each one of us. Adequate and effective corporate governance and risk management arrangements are thus paramount. This article explores the intersection of English criminal, regulatory and civil liabilities and remedies in connection with cyber fraud and how cyber attacks will inevitably generate financial penalties and litigation matching those of the global Libor and Forex scandals.