Hackers launched a wave of sophisticated attacks on Wall Street firms in recent days, targeting information systems at major money managers, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
Point72 Asset Management informed investors on Wednesday that it had been attacked, though the hedge fund’s initial indications were that no client information was stolen.
The firm told investors it was still reviewing the incident, the person said.
Attackers also attempted to infiltrate the information systems at other major hedge funds including Millennium Management, Two Sigma Investments and Citadel as well as several private equity firms as part of the assault, the people said.
The attack featured voice phishing, or vishing, in which cyber criminals use technology to mimic voices in phone calls or messages to trick employees into revealing sensitive information or granting access, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing non-public information.
Two Sigma, which oversees $75 billion of assets, said it thwarted the attempt to access sensitive data.
“Our security team responded quickly to an attempted vishing campaign targeting Two Sigma and other investment managers, and we have no indication of any impact to our data or our systems,” a spokesperson for Two Sigma said in a statement. “We continue to monitor the situation closely.”
Cybersecurity breaches on Wall Street have surged over the past year, as artificial intelligence tools help bad actors launch attacks relatively cheaply and broadly, said Vinod Paul, president of Align Managed Services, which specializes in helping hedge funds with cybersecurity and information technology.
“Before they could attack 50 entities in a targeted attack, now they can do 1,000,” Paul said. “Hackers can also listen into a phone call and mimic the voice, tone and phrasings of the speakers to create fake calls.”
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