Overview
- A Leipzig driving school wired nearly €62,000 for an Audi Q5 to a manipulated bank account after paying an emailed invoice.
- The listed IBAN belonged to Banco Bilbao and carried a German DE prefix, which made the document appear credible.
- The Spanish bank froze the funds and the dealer has recovered about half of the transfer, with police probing additional linked cases.
- Investigators report that criminals seize access to business email accounts using stolen credentials traded on the dark web to swap payment details.
- Police, banking groups and the IHK urge phone confirmation of any account changes, four‑eyes approval for large transfers, and immediate password and mailbox rule checks if compromise is suspected.