An Ann Arbor man has pleaded guilty to defrauding investors of more than $2.7 million through a commodities trading scheme that falsely promised guaranteed returns and investment protection.
Brian Mitchell, 43, entered a guilty plea Friday, June 12, to one count of wire fraud in federal court.
Recommended Videos
According to court records, Mitchell admitted to defrauding multiple investors by making false claims about the security, profitability, and use of their money.
Prosecutors said Mitchell solicited investments through entities known as Young Pros Investment Group, or YPIG, and My Nest Egg.
Mitchell acknowledged that he repeatedly told investors that their principal investments were protected from loss and guaranteed, and that they would receive specific returns and could withdraw funds at designated times.
Federal authorities said those representations were false.
After suffering…
IT & DATA SECURITY (MITIGATING THE “INSIDER THREAT”)
As seen in the TD Bank case, an employee with too much “access” can sell your customer data to syndicates.
- Principle of Least Privilege (PoLP): Employees should only have access to the specific folders and databases required for their current task.
- Access Revocation: Have a “Termination Checklist” that ensures all digital access (Email, VPN, Banking) is revoked within 60 minutes of an employee resigning or being dismissed.
- System Logs & Audit Trails: Enable “Read/Write Logging” on your server. If a customer’s data is leaked, you need to know exactly which login accessed that record and at what time.
- Encryption at Rest: Ensure that sensitive files (like your customer ID numbers or payroll spreadsheets) are encrypted so that if a staff member copies them to a USB, they cannot be read.