Latest news with #Granicus
Time of India
13-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Hackers may have misused US government's email alert system to send scam messages
Representative image Hackers have reportedly misused a US federal and state government department's email notification system to send scam messages . This system, which is used to alert residents to important information, has been exploited by cybercriminals, a report claims. According to a report by TechCrunch, the US state of Indiana has said that it is "aware of fraudulent messages purportedly sent by state agencies" concerning unpaid tolls. The report also claims to have reviewed an example of a scam email sent from an Indiana government department. This email claimed the recipient had an outstanding toll balance and contained a disguised link redirecting to a malicious site. The Indiana Office of Technology issued a statement saying they are "working with the company that was used to deliver those messages to stop any further communication.' The state suggested that a contractor's account was compromised and used to distribute the scam messages. However, Indiana clarified that it was not aware of "any current state systems" being compromised but did not exclude the possibility of a prior breach. The statement also revealed that the contract with the unnamed company, which ended in December 2024, "did not remove the state's account." The company was later identified as government tech major Granicus by TechCrunch. What Granicus said about hackers misusing the govt email alert system In a statement to TechCrunch, Granicus spokesperson Sharon Rushen said: 'We are aware of the recent malicious emails sent via GovDelivery from Indiana's government domain.' The company acknowledged that the breach resulted from a compromised user account but dismissed Indiana's allegations. 'Granicus systems themselves were not breached,' said Rushen. The company also confirmed that it has the technical means to determine how many individuals received the malicious emails, but has yet to disclose that figure. How scammers used to email alert system to trap users In January, the Federal Trade Commission identified a practice where scammers were increasingly sending fake toll notices by text and email. These cybercriminals target official government mailing systems to make their messages appear legitimate. In one case shared with TechCrunch, a phishing email claiming unpaid Texas tolls was sent from an Indiana Emergency Operations Center address. It warned of penalties or vehicle registration holds and included a link disguised as a URL, which redirected to a fraudulent TxTag site. This fake site stole personal details, including name, address, phone number and credit card information. AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Former Indiana contractor hacked, sends scam toll messages from state accounts
Scam messages purportedly sent by state accounts flooded Hoosier inboxes Tuesday. (Niki Kelly/Indiana Capital Chronicle) Fraudulent messages purportedly sent by state agencies about collecting tolls are 'scams,' the Indiana Office of Technology confirmed Tuesday. The office cautioned Hoosiers to 'not click on any of the links,' noting that Indiana 'does not send unpaid toll notifications via text or email messages.' 'A (former) contractor's account was hacked and used to send those messages,' the office added. Each scam message says it was sent 'using GovDelivery Communications Cloud on behalf of' numerous state agencies. Some of the messages came purportedly from former Gov. Eric Holcomb. Indiana previously used the platform, offered by Colorado-based Granicus, to manage digital communications with constituents. The contract for those services ended December 31 — but Indiana's account wasn't removed, according to IOT. The office said it's 'working with' the company 'to stop any further communications.' Agencies like the Department of Revenue and Alcohol & Tobacco Commission also warned subscribers on Tuesday to 'ignore and delete' the spam messages, and apologized for the inconvenience. Indiana has since switched over to products from California-based Salesforce.
TechCrunch
13-05-2025
- Business
- TechCrunch
Government email alert system GovDelivery used to send scam messages
An email notification system used by U.S. federal and state government departments to alert residents to important information, has been used to send scam emails, TechCrunch has learned. The U.S. state of Indiana said Tuesday that it is 'aware of fraudulent messages purportedly sent by state agencies' to residents about unpaid tolls. TechCrunch has seen one email message sent from an Indiana government department that claimed the recipient had an outstanding toll balance, and contained a disguised link that redirected to a malicious site. A statement from the Indiana Office of Technology said it was 'working with the company that was used to deliver those messages to stop any further communication.' Indiana said a contractor's account was hacked and used to send the scam messages. The state said it was not aware of 'any current state systems' being compromised, but did not rule out an earlier breach. The statement said that the contract with the unspecified company, which TechCrunch has learned is govtech giant Granicus, ended in December 2024, but the state claimed that the company 'did not remove the state's account.' When reached for comment, Granicus spokesperson Sharon Rushen told TechCrunch: 'We are aware of the recent malicious emails sent via GovDelivery from Indiana's government domain.' The company confirmed the breach was caused by a compromised user account, but did not comment on Indiana's claims. 'Granicus systems themselves were not breached,' said Rushen. When asked, the company said it does have the technical means to determine how many individuals received the malicious emails, but did not immediately provide a figure of those affected. Fake toll messages are an increasingly common scam, as the Federal Trade Commission warned in January. The scam involves sending text messages and emails that claim the recipients owe money to tolling agencies across the United States. By targeting email systems used by governments to notify the public, scammers are hoping victims would be more likely to open official-looking emails. A person who received the scam message shared the email with TechCrunch. The scam email was sent from an official Indiana government email address associated with the state's Emergency Operations Center, which coordinates responses and alerts in the event of a natural disaster or other emergency events. The email claimed the recipient had unpaid tolls in Texas, and that 'failure to pay may result in penalties or vehicle registration holds.' The scam email contained a link, which appears as an official web address, but when clicked redirects to a malicious site impersonating the website of state of Texas' Department of Transport's road toll collection service, TxTag. The scam website attempted to trick users into turning over their personal information, such as their name, phone number, home address, and their credit card details. The site (and another clone site hosted on a similar domain) appeared to be offline as of Tuesday morning on the U.S. east coast. A spokesperson for the Indiana government did not immediately comment.
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
STR consultant contract back on Niagara Falls City Council agenda
The Niagara Falls City Council will again consider a request from Mayor Robert Restaino to extend the contract of a company hired to monitor compliance with the city's Short Term Rental (STR) ordinance. The mayor is asking council members to extend, for one year, a contract with Granicus, a Denver, Colorado, consulting company that was first hired in February 2022 to enforce the regulations and tax collection requirements contained in the STR ordinance. Action on the mayor's request was postponed at a council meeting two weeks ago. It is back on the council's agenda tonight. The meeting starts at 6 p.m. inside council chambers at city hall, 745 Main St. When a previous city council entered into a three-year agreement with Granicus the firm was tasked to provide enforcement services including, among other things, providing the city with "address identification, compliance rental activity monitoring, tax collections and a 24/7 web and phone hotline." STR owners have repeatedly complained that Granicus has failed to fulfill its contract requirements. "They support this unnecessary (STR) ordinance by offering people a way to register," said STR operator Cherish Beals. "By the way, their site was down for 8 to 12 months so they weren't even operating and we paid for a year while their site was not operating." The proposed contract extension would pay Granicus $36,907. The 2022 STR zoning code ordinance modified the way short-term, vacation and transient rental properties are regulated in the Falls. The ordinance imposed limits on where short-term rentals could operate, required new permits for current STRs and added a yearly fee for operators along with yearly inspections. It also required STR operators to collect the same taxes that currently apply to hotels, motels and bed and breakfast inns. Under the terms of the law, the yearly fee was designated to be used to hire a specialized STR compliance service provider or vendor to manage the new regulations and tax collection requirements. Former City Council Chair John Spanbauer, who said he viewed a presentation on Granicus' services, with Restaino, described the company as 'one of the best' in short-term rental monitoring and compliance. Granicus says it contracts to provide a variety of services to 2,500 local governments, including 48 of the 50 largest cities in the United States.
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Granicus' owners explore $4 billion sale of software maker, sources say
By Milana Vinn NEW YORK (Reuters) - The private equity owners of Granicus are preparing to explore a sale of the government-services software maker that could value it at about $4 billion, including debt, according to people familiar with the matter. Denver-based Granicus, which is owned by Vista Equity Partners and Harvest Partners, has tapped investment banks Jefferies and William Blair to launch a sale process in the second half of the year, the sources said, requesting anonymity as the discussions are confidential. See for yourself — The Yodel is the go-to source for daily news, entertainment and feel-good stories. By signing up, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy. The deliberations are at an early stage, the sources said, cautioning that the plans are yet to be finalized and the timing of the sale process could change. Vista Equity and Harvest Partners are hoping to command a valuation for Granicus equivalent to more than 20 times its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization of about $175 million, the sources said. Vista Equity declined to comment. Harvest Partners, Granicus, Jefferies, and William Blair did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Founded in 1999, Granicus provides cloud-based software and other technology tools to federal, state, and local governments across the world to help with their efforts around efficiency and transparency. The company designs and maintains government websites, manages public records, and helps upgrade technology to make it easier for citizens to contact public officials. Vista acquired a majority stake in Granicus in 2016, which was followed by a merger between the company and another Vista-backed software maker, GovDelivery. Harvest took a significant stake in Granicus from existing investors Vista and K1 Investment Management in 2020.
