CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Cleveland Public Library sent nearly $400,000 to a fake vendor in June 2024, according to our CBS affiliate WTOL-11 TV.
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The transfer was made after the library fell victim to a payment redirect scheme, according to an audit released by the Ohio Auditor’s Office.
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The library’s audit covered Jan. 1, 2024, to Dec. 31, 2024, and the incident was disclosed in a management letter, according to WTOL-11.
The scam happened after someone posed as a vendor and requested to change the library’s bank payment information, according to WTOL-11.
The library sent the money to a fictitious account, auditors said.
“The library did not have a proper internal control process in place to detect fictitious vendors,” auditors wrote. “We did note that the library immediately implemented multiple vendor verification measures to prevent future business email compromise schemes.”
Nearly $400,000 was initially lost; however, the library recovered the full amount.
WTOL-11 reported that approximately $350,000 was covered by insurance, $133,840.50 was recovered from the fake account and repaid to insurance, and $46,405.14 was forgiven by the actual vendor.
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