Billion-dollar scam
After arriving in the U.S., Guo raised more than $1 billion from his online supporters, who believed they were investing in various companies and projects between 2018 and 2023. His schemes included a members-only club with a minimum $10,000 buy-in and a cryptocurrency platform called the Himalaya Exchange, prosecutors said. In return, supporters were promised big returns and luxury services. Guo had also said in his livestreams to supporters that he would personally compensate investors for any losses.
Instead, however, prosecutors said Guo spent the money on a Manhattan penthouse, a 50,000 square foot mansion in New Jersey, a $1 million Lamborghini, a $37 million yacht, and other luxuries.
Guo was arrested by the FBI in March 2023. The next year, a jury found him guilty on nine of 12 charges, including securities offences, wire fraud and money laundering. Guo’s…
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.