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Extra.ie
2 days ago
- Business
- Extra.ie
NTMA in €5m scam outrage as agency duped by voice 'phishing' and fake invoice
Fraudsters used voice impersonation and a fake invoice to scam the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA) out of €5million, can reveal. The agency, which the State has entrusted with the management of billions of euros for the taxpayer, realised in recent days that it had been the victim of a sophisticated voice phishing attack. Voice phishing is when scammers impersonate someone on the phone to gain information and the trust of the intended target. Pearse Doherty. Pic: Fran Veale Sources with knowledge of the attack told that it appears to have been executed with 'insider knowledge' after it managed to bypass several layers of security protocol. Sinn Féin's finance spokesman, Pearse Doherty, has called for the NTMA to be immediately hauled before the Oireachtas Finance Committee to explain how an agency that has control over billions of euros could be susceptible to such a breach. understands that the scam relates to the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF) arm of the agency and that it was only discovered in recent days. Pic: Getty Images The scammers are understood to have impersonated a legitimate entity that has dealings with the ISIF in order to trick the organisation into making a payment to a fraudulent account. However, there is confusion over how the attack was successful, given the protective procedures in place at the NTMA. The Department of Finance was only informed of the issue after queries from Mr Doherty told 'The question here is, with the amount of money the NTMA holds on deposit for the State, how such an organisation would be vulnerable to a phishing scam. It is seriously questionable. Pearse Doherty. Pic: Sam Boal/Collins Photos 'They hold billions of Irish money. We will need to hear very quickly from the NTMA how this has happened. I'll be asking the chair of the Oireachtas Finance Committee to bring them before the committee as quickly as possible.' Mr Doherty said that despite his party calling for the NTMA to divest from investing in Israeli companies in occupied Palestinian territories, they 'haven't had a blemish for a long, long time'. 'It has dealt with our debt through difficult times, and has really impeccable standing. I'm shocked that an organisation has left billions in taxpayers' money vulnerable. Pic: Shutterstock 'The processes here should be robust enough, given the level of money they handled, in the billions, to make sure these types of scams… they should not be vulnerable to any scam, no matter how sophisticated. I'm quite shocked,' he said. In a statement, a spokesman for the NTMA said that it notified An Garda Síochána once it detected the fraud and immediately worked to contain the issue. Following the detection by the NTMA of a fraudulent payment call to the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund issued by an external party, in line with protocols, the NTMA took immediate steps to assess and contain the potential impact. Frank O'Connor. Pic: Gareth Chaney/Collins 'The fraudulent payment call was immediately reported to the relevant authorities, including An Garda Síochána, and investigations and recovery efforts are ongoing. Given the ongoing investigations and active recovery efforts, we can't comment further,' they said. The NTMA, headed by CEO Frank O'Connor, is responsible for managing public assets and liabilities prudently for long-term benefit on behalf of the State. It oversees the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund, which invests in projects that support economic activity and employment in Ireland. The ISIF is mandated to invest on a commercial basis to support economic activity and employment in Ireland. According to its 2023 annual report, the NTMA had € 35 billion in investment capital. It is due to publish its annual report on Tuesday. The scam is the most significant to hit an Irish agency since the ransomware attack that hit the Health Service Executive in May 2021. The devastating ransomware attack was also deployed through phishing. A malicious email with a spreadsheet attachment was sent to HSE staff, which, when opened, installed malware that later enabled the attack, which infected 80% of all HSE systems and took four months to resolve, resulting in major disruption to the country's health system. The ransomware attack, carried out by cybercriminals linked to the Russian hacking group Conti, resulted in the theft of data from around 100,000 patients and cost the State almost € 150 million to rectify. Almost 500 lawsuits have been taken against the HSE arising from the data breach caused by the attack. A report into that attack criticised the HSE's 'flat' IT network design, outdated operating systems, lack of multi-factor authentication, and insufficient cyber threat detection. Governance gaps were also highlighted, noting that IT leadership was fragmented and under-resourced, making strategic coordination of cybersecurity difficult. Furthermore, contingency plans and incident response procedures were either missing or inadequate, leaving the organisation scrambling to react. The Government and HSE have insisted that no ransom was paid and that the decryption key was provided freely by the attackers, though this did little to alleviate the extensive disruption already inflicted. Since the attack, the HSE has undertaken substantial efforts to modernise its cybersecurity infrastructure, but the report warns that similar vulnerabilities may still exist across other public sector organisations. The HSE cyberattack led to an overhaul of IT governance and continuous monitoring, as well as a proactive national strategy to defend Ireland's public institutions against evolving cyber threats.
Irish Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Irish Times
Who owns SuperValu? Don't ask Sinn Féin
Inflation overall has been slowing in recent months but there can be little doubt that the cost-of-living crisis is still very much real. It is perhaps most real when it comes to food prices. A pound of butter is €1.10 more expensive than a year ago, the Central Statistics Office said this week, for example, while two litres of milk costs 27 cent more than in June 2024. Therefore, it was reasonable that the Dáil would hold a debate on supermarket profits this week. These debates tend to follow a pattern, whatever the topic. Opposition deputies indignantly question Government policy and essentially ask what those in charge are 'going to do about it'. Government ministers reply that they are already doing lots of things to fix the problem. And so it goes. READ MORE Sinn Féin finance spokesman Pearse Doherty can be an especially strong Dáil performer, and can be very convincing in whatever he is saying. Yet he and his party colleagues appear to have been poorly prepared for this debate, or at least poorly advised. 'The stock prices of supermarkets and the large retailers and food companies have been going through the roof,' he told the chamber. 'They have been skyrocketing in recent times. Tesco's stock is up 30 per cent in the last year. United Natural Foods Inc., the owners of SuperValu , saw its stock price rise by 60 per cent in the last year.' Sinn Féin's Máire Devine followed soon after, noting an increase in 'SuperValu's stock by nearly 61 per cent.' Paul Donnelly , another Sinn Féin TD – notice a pattern here – later told the Dáil that 'United Natural Foods, owners of SuperValu, reported a turnover exceeding €5 billion for the first time, with profits of €104 million'. There's just one problem here. The SuperValu owned by United Natural Foods is a US supermarket chain that is not connected at all with SuperValu in Ireland. The Irish chain is owned by Cork-based Musgrave . This is basic stuff. Google 'supervalu owner' and the correct answer is clear. As anyone in media knows, getting one fact wrong can discredit an entire story. The same can be said for politics. Whatever the validity of the overall point Doherty, Devine or Donnelly were making, they showed that, at best, they weren't read up on what they were talking about. The price of food is a serious topic, it deserves to be taken seriously. Or, at the very least, be subject to a Google search.
Irish Times
3 days ago
- Health
- Irish Times
No money yet released from €8m special needs funds despite Tanáiste's pledges
No money has yet been released from an €8 million Health Service Executive fund for families of children with special needs. The news comes 20 months after the grant was launched and three months after delays were highlighted in the Dáil when Tánaiste Simon Harris pledged to ensure it would be paid. Sinn Féin finance spokesman Pearse Doherty said the 52 organisations, including four in Donegal , due to benefit from the fund for essential therapies, have now been asked to reapply. He said there was no guarantee they would receive the grant. The Donegal TD said parents were 'seething at what is happening here'. When Mr Doherty raised the issue in the Dáil in March, Mr Harris pledged the funding would be provided and expressed regret it had taken so long. READ MORE The funding for essential therapies for children with additional needs was promised in 2023 and then re-announced a year later. A nine-year-old Donegal boy, Jack McGahern Donaghey, who has cerebral palsy,uses a wheelchair and needs physiotherapy and speech and language therapy, took part in a photograph with ministers in 2024. In March 2025, when no funding had been released, his mother, Denise McGahern, said she felt her son had been used as a 'prop in a photo opportunity'. In the Dáil on Thursday, Mr Doherty told the Tánaiste 'despite your promises, here we are three months on and still no funding being released'. He said 'ministers of your previous cabinet went to Donegal, announced specific money, multiannual money for these projects'. 'You promised that you would make sure that it was being provided. Not just that it was sanctioned and released, but that it was being provided. None of these groups have got it.' One organisation had been promised €3 million over a three-year period, he added. But, holding up a letter the organisations had received, he said: 'They've been told that they have to reapply for shortlisting, that the funding is no longer multiannual. 'The fund needs to be spent by the end of the year. They only have to the end of the year to spend money, but you haven't even given it yet.' Mr Harris said that on March 25th this year the Department of Children, Disability and Equality secured sanction for the €8 million grant fund to come from the €3.2 billion disability services budget. 'So from the Government's point of view, once it was sanctioned, we expected it to start to be spent, to start being drawn down in light of what you brought to my attention.' He said he had followed it up and this week he was told 'there was some final compliance and governance issues in relation to some projects'. The Tánaiste said: 'It would be useful if we take the Donegal projects as an example to convene a meeting next week of our office members with the relevant HSE and departmental officials.' He would undertake to get that in place and would talk to Minister for Disability Norma Foley on the issue on Thursday. 'From the Government's perspective, the funding has now been allocated and the funding now needs to be spent quickly' for the benefit of the children.
Irish Daily Mirror
3 days ago
- Politics
- Irish Daily Mirror
Simon Harris defends controversial visa refusal for Palestine GAA kids
Tánaiste Simon Harris has defended the refusal of visas for children travelling from Palestine to play GAA in Ireland as he argued it is a 'child protection matter'. GAA Palestine had planned to bring in 33 Palestinian children and young teenagers to Ireland later this month for a tour, but were denied entry. They were to be accompanied by 14 mentors. The tour was scheduled to begin on 18 July, with more than 100 Irish families volunteering to host the Palestinian group, and numerous GAA clubs fundraising to support the visit. A spokesman for GAA Palestine said it was shocked by the decision of the Irish Immigration Service. It argued that it submitted comprehensive documentation, which included detailed plans for visits to various GAA clubs across Ireland, educational exchanges, and cultural activities as part of its application. In the Dáil, Sinn Féin's Pearse Doherty described the decision to reject the visa applications as 'cruel'. In response, Mr Harris said there were 'child protection issues' associated with the case. He said: 'We are not just talking about 33 children seeking to come to Ireland. We are also talking about a number of adults, almost all of whom are not the parents of any of the children. 'We have strict rules on migration and who can come into our country. It has to be a rules-based system. I do not want to go too far into the application. I am sure everyone is engaging in good faith. 'There is certainly not an effort by the State to seek to block or be difficult here. I am engaging in good faith on this too. There are rules and processes. There is an appeals process available.' Social Democrats TD Sinead Gibney stated that GAA Palestine is 'adamant' that the paperwork is in order and argued that 'if this was a group of Israeli kids because the rules-based system has different rules for different groups they would enjoy visa-free travel here'. However, the Tánaiste denied the charge and once again insisted that the rules have to be followed. He continued: 'We are not tearing up our rules-based migration system. If God forbid anything happened to any child from any part of this country who came in here unaccompanied by a parent, the Minister would be hauled in here and asked what he did and why did he let it happen. 'Child protection matters. There is no short circuit. There is no round the back of the scrum. Do not dare do Israel versus Palestine. This is child protection. We have a visa system. We have rules on this.' A spokesperson for the Department of Justice said that 'each visa application is decided on its own merits'. 'Confirming that appropriate child protection requirements are in place is essential when considering visa applications for minors. This includes a requirement that a child is travelling with their parents or an appropriate guardian, which requires additional documents to be verified such as birth certificates and consent letters.' Steven Redmond, chairperson of GAA Palestine, said it is committed to working with the department to resolve the issue. He added: 'Seven days before these young boys and girls were meant to leave the West Bank, we are told that additional documentation is now required — documentation that was already provided or never previously requested or indicated as necessary. 'We went as far as sending a volunteer to the West Bank to assist with additional documentation that was requested as part of our application. 'Nonetheless, GAA Palestine remains committed to collaborating closely with the Department of Justice to resolve this matter swiftly. We have a dedicated team of volunteers ready to respond and take immediate action. 'We are fully prepared to see this process through. We kindly ask the Government to partner with us in making this happen.'
BreakingNews.ie
3 days ago
- Politics
- BreakingNews.ie
Disability groups approved for millions in funding left waiting more than a year
Disability groups in Donegal that had been approved for eight million in funding are still waiting for the money, despite repeated promises by the Government over the last year. The Children's Disability Service grant was launched in October 2023 and again in June 2024, and was to be used to fund projects helping children with special needs. Advertisement Sinn Féin TD Pearse Doherty told the Dáil in March that the funding had not yet been released to the disability groups in Donegal. Days later, it was confirmed by the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality Norma Foley that she had 'secured sanction' for eight million euros to fund the projects that met the criteria. However, Mr Doherty told the Dáil on Thursday that the funding is still outstanding. He said that his constituent Denise McGahern, who was at the launch of the grant with her son, feels betrayed. Advertisement Her nine-year-old son Jack Donaghey has cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair. 'Denise went public to express her disgust and anger she felt that her son was used at a prop in an election government photo op and back in March, you apologised,' Mr Doherty told Tanaiste Simon Harris. 'You apologised that the situation went on for so long. You said that you would not defend something that was indefensible. You said, in regards to the funding, and I quote, 'I am going to make sure it is released. I am going to make sure it is provided'. 'Five days after the exchange between me and you in the Dail, the government again announced the funding would be released. Advertisement 'Yet despite your promises, here we are three months on and still no funding being released, still not provided, still the therapies are not available on the ground.' 'The 54 organisations that thought they had successfully applied for the grant haven't received a single red cent. Now, not only that, it gets worse because these organisations, some of them were publicly announced. 'Some of them were announced that they would get millions of euros over a three-year project. They have been told that they have to reapply for shortlisting, that the funding is no longer multi-annual, that it all needs to be spent by the end of the year.' He said that the groups have until the end of the year to spend money they have not yet received. Advertisement Mr Doherty said the Government has announced the funding on three separate occasions but that none of it has been given to the disability projects. 'It's kids here, kids with special needs, kids like Jack with cerebral palsy, kids who are in braces, kids who are trying to speak, kids who are PEG-fed, kids who want to walk, who are actually suffering as a result of this here,' he added. 'These children and their parents are left crying out for help. And it's cruel.' Mr Harris said the Government has allocated the eight million euros in funding, adding that there may be final compliance checks. Advertisement He said he will organise a meeting with the HSE in the coming days. Tánaiste Simon Harris said he would set up a meeting with HSE (Liam McBurney/PA) 'I've been asking about this on a pretty regular basis, because these are important projects, and indeed, I had an opportunity to speak to the head of the HSE, Bernard Gloster on it only this week, as part of our kind of ongoing regular engagements.'I understood, in relation specifically to the Donegal group, that they're in very regular contact. 'I'm also told that they (the groups) have been assured that their costs will be funded. 'From a government point of view, we've allocated the 8 million. I take the point, and I did apologise for it, around the delay. Ireland Teenager who sued over a delay in hearing loss dia... Read More 'We have now sanctioned the funding. And certainly, while I can fully understand there might be final compliance checks or governance checks, I don't say this rudely to the groups, we do want to see the money. 'Because of the importance of the issue, I'll ask that we have a meeting. I accept there are more projects in Donegal but we'll have maybe a meeting of Donegal Oireachtas members. 'I'll ask that that's arranged with the relevant minister or HSE next week to try and bring a finality to this situation.'
