Hackers tricked a Dutch museum into paying them £2.4 million for a John Constable painting by posing as art dealers.
Hackers intercepted emails sent between the Rijksmuseum Twenthe, in the Netherlands, and art dealer Dickinson, who were organising the sale of Constable's 'A View of Hampstead Heath: Child's Hill, Harrow in the Distance' (1824).
They contacted the museum claiming to be Dickinson, an art dealer specialising in Old Master paintings, and persuaded the museum's contacts to pay £2.4m into a bank account based in Hong Kong.
The painting had been sent to the museum and Dickinson was deprived of the money from the sale, the Sunday Telegraph reported.
There have been many warnings about cybercrime, especially in the art. The case is no exception, as other art trading companies have also been targeted.
In Constable's case, Rijksmuseum Twenthe sued Dickinson in the High Court in London, claiming that the agency was negligent for not realizing that the emails sent were fraudulent.
The museum's claim for compensation was rejected in January this year, even though the court has yet to rule on the ownership of the painting.
Lawyers, on behalf of the Dickinson company, argued that the museum should have confirmed that the banking details were legitimate before sending the painting.
Susan Mumford, founder and CEO of the Association of Women Technical Representatives, told the newspaper that failure to carry out basic checks contributed to the fraud.
"The issue is the lack of due diligence and checks. Sending £2.4m to Hong Kong, when the trader is based in London, raises an immediate question and anyone sending a significant amount of money these days should double-check," he said.
“This type of fraud is becoming increasingly common and is one of the biggest risks for art dealers today, but I have not come across a case where such a large amount was transferred to the wrong account.”
"Measures are essential. You need to verbally confirm with a merchant that the bank details are correct," said Susan Mumford.
