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ACCA · Question 09 · Syllabus C: Business functions, regulation and technology
[Section A] A fintech startup experiences a cyber-security incident. An employee receives an email appearing to be from the CEO, urgently requesting the transfer of funds to a new vendor. The employee complies, only to discover later that the email address was slightly misspelled and belonged to a malicious actor. What specific type of cyber-attack has occurred?
[Section A] A fintech startup experiences a cyber-security incident. An employee receives an email appearing to be from the CEO, urgently requesting the transfer of funds to a new vendor. The employee complies, only to discover later that the email address was slightly misspelled and belonged to a malicious actor. What specific type of cyber-attack has occurred?
Answer options:
A.
Ransomware
B.
Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS)
C.
Spear-phishing
D.
Malware injection
How to approach this question
Identify the mechanism of the attack: a deceptive email targeting a specific employee and impersonating a specific executive.
Full Answer
C.Spear-phishing✓ Correct
Phishing is the fraudulent practice of sending emails purporting to be from reputable companies. When it is highly targeted at a specific individual or organization (like impersonating the CEO to trick a specific finance employee), it is known as spear-phishing (or 'whaling' if targeting a senior executive).
Common mistakes
Confusing phishing with ransomware. Ransomware locks systems; phishing tricks users into handing over data or money voluntarily.
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