'Catch Me If You Can' Employee Fraudster Bankrolls $100,000 Vacation

Reece Scobie, 20 of Rait, Perthshire duped travel agents Thomson Travel and Cambridge Business Travel out of $100,000 (£70,000)

The grand con started within weeks of Scobie taking on a trainee travel agent position with Thomson Travel. The young conman used company credentials to access booking systems that allowed him to fund his lavish trips to Singapore, Los Angeles, New York, Dubai and several other dream destinations. Scobie only worked for Thomson Travel for 2 months but continued to use the companies passwords to book flights and accomdation for 7 months after leaving his post.

Scobie who was likened to to Leonardo DiCaprio in Catch Me If You Can – a cinematic portrayal of real life con-man Frank W. Abagnale – was caught and given a 16 month sentence for fraudulently funding a globetrotting lifestyle.

However, Scobie has been handed a further 8 month sentence after admitting to a series of frauds on hotels and rail firms. He used popular websites to acquire customer card details as well as intercepting online bookings as they were sent out hotels and venues.

So how can companies avoid an opportunist having an all-expenses paid trip around the world or generally accessing accounts they shouldn’t once they leave their job?

Firstly it is important to make sure that when employees leave the company that their accounts are closed and access to any company information has been revoked. But also using a password manager will help increase corporate security.

My1login is a business password manager that allows admins to share passwords with individuals and workgroups but also quickly cease individual user access to logins when necessary, which immediately prevents from similar situations arising. The password manager has further security benefits by allowing admins to restrict the visibility of passwords. Employees will have access to company systems without actually seeing the passwords that protect individual accounts. In addition to these security features, admins also receive an audit trail that allows them to track who has access to what and when. This provides the ultimate protection from employees abusing business systems, which in turn protects the company reputation.

Find out how my1login can protect your business.