The prevalence of cybercrime in Ohio and the nation continues to make headlines, with indications that targets have expanded to include nonprofit and religious organizations. Business email compromise scammed U.S. businesses to the tune of $1.2 billion in 2018. In light of this expansion, potential targets should review their security measures for computers and other online devices. This year, an Ohio church was the victim of a scam that cost the church $1.75 million.
According to Trend Micro, the Saint Ambrose Catholic Parish of Brunswick, Ohio, noticed money was missing from its accounts after a construction firm claimed its charges were unpaid. The church discovered that the BEC attackers hacked into two employee email accounts. This access was then used to dupe the religious organization into depositing money into the bank accounts of the cybercriminals. This is just the latest case illustrating that BEC does not just target businesses but can involve any organization that has substantial banks accounts or wires large sums of money.
In another area of business law that is rapidly evolving, Ohio State University is offering a course on the legalization of marijuana. One purpose of the course, according to Columbus CEO, is to provide law students with exposure to the business complexities of marijuana use, law enforcement and company operations. Attorneys who wish to help clients as business advisers will learn strategies for navigating a business model that is legal on the state level but illegal on the federal level. The course, taught by an attorney, is titled “Cannabiz: exploring the legalization of marijuana.”