As proof that not all cyberattacks leave victims broke and out of luck, the New Jersey borough of Palisades Park received a $200,000 advancement on its insurance claim this week after a breach at Mariner’s Bank, based in the nearby town of Edgewater, drained nearly half a million dollars from its accounts.

Last month, a fraudulent wire transfer resulted in $460,000 from the borough’s accounts after what Dave Lorenzo, the borough administrator, described as a “massive failure of internal controls by the bank” in  a hack into the borough’s computer systems, according to NorthJersey.com.

An investigation determined the funds were accessed and authorized through the borough’s systems and not through a breach of the bank’s data, Mariner’s Bank President and CEO Frank Giancola said. 

The funds are part of an advancement positioned by the town’s risk manager to help the council prepare for the 2019 budget.





“This is an advancement to help soften the burden,” Lorenzo said. “We still anticipate getting all of the missing money back.”