The Henderson County Clerk’s Office has received funds back after a scammer tricked them into paying a false bill.
Henderson County Clerk Renesa Abner said a scammer had hacked into the system of Harp Enterprises, an election equipment vendor that provides equipment and maintenance to the county, and obtained the email address of the employee who works in accounts receivable and who regularly sends emails to Abner.
Abner said in November she received a bill from the email address, and it appeared as it always had. The only thing different is that directions on the bill asked that payment be sent electronically, which is something the company has never asked before.
Abner thought the company was moving its processes to a more modern payment acceptance, so she notified County Treasurer Brenda Rider to set up the payment.
“It just didn’t seem odd to me,” Abner said. “It all looked legitimate.”
A day after the payment went through, Abner was at Kentucky County Clerks Association conference and learned that other counties had also received the bill and that a representative for Harp said it was a scam.
She immediately notified Rider, who contacted the county’s bank, Field & Main, which found that the money had gone to an account at a Truist Bank in Florida.
The banks worked together, and on Tuesday, Judge-Executive Brad Schneider notified the Fiscal Court that the charge on the fake bill— $47,000—had been returned.
