OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) – A man and woman from Omaha were sentenced in federal court for their parts in a wire fraud scheme that defrauded multiple government programs.
According to a release from the office of United States Attorney Lesley A. Woods, 52-year-old Brian Smith and 50-year-old Myria Phaisan, both of Omaha, were sentenced in federal court for conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
Smith will serve 27 months in prison followed by a three-year term of supervised release, and was ordered to pay over $455,000 in restitution.
Phaisan was sentenced to a five-year term of supervised release, and was ordered to pay over $225,000 in restitution.
There is no parole in the federal system.
A third defendant, identified as Syed Hussain, has not been apprehended by law enforcement. Hussain is charged with the following:
- One count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud
- Five counts of wire fraud
- One count of…
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.