Andhra Pradesh Mahesh Co-Operative Urban Bank

It is a co-operative urban bank providing banking services such as savings accounts, current accounts, loans, and other financial products to its members. It operates under co-operative principles, aiming to serve the financial needs of individuals and small businesses in its locality. As an urban co-operative bank, it is regulated by the Reserve Bank of India and the state co-operative department. Its primary market is the urban population of Andhra Pradesh, where it offers deposit and credit facilities.

The bank's headquarters is located in India. It operates branches within Andhra Pradesh, serving a regional customer base. The incidents described indicate it had core banking systems interconnected across branches, suggesting a networked IT infrastructure supporting its operations. The bank's size and reach are not disclosed in the available material.

The bank's co-operative structure means it is owned and governed by its members, who elect a board of directors. Its focus on urban banking distinguishes it from rural co-operative banks. The security incidents highlighted gaps in basic cybersecurity controls, such as missing firewall licensing, lack of intrusion detection/prevention systems, insufficient phishing protections, absent VLAN segmentation, and inadequate employee training. These deficiencies allowed attackers to deploy a remote access trojan, manipulate account balances, and withdraw funds via ATMs, underscoring the need for improved security posture. The first incident occurred on 1 January 2022, while a similar breach was reported on 30 November 2021. In both cases, attackers used phishing emails to install a remote access trojan on employee workstations. Law enforcement actions resulted in arrests of Nigerian nationals and domestic accomplices, and froze a portion of the stolen funds.