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12.10.18 Free


At the Frankfurt Book Fair 2018.


Hall 6.0, Stand C104


The Book Thief: publishers react as cyber criminals attempt to pilfer manuscripts


EMAIL PHISHING SCAMS HAVE DISRUPTED AN OTHERWISE ‘SOLID’ FBF, PUBLISHERS SAID


A


spate of global phishing scams atempting to access agencies’ and publishers’ manuscripts and other sensitive information prompted Penguin Random House (PRH) North America to issue an urgent warning to all staff as the Frankfurt Book Fair began.


The company sent an email to staff on


Wednesday (10th October), when The Bookseller revealed scouting agency Eccles Fisher was hit by a phishing scam. Owner Catherine Eccles said someone was purport- ing to be her in emails and atempting to access manuscripts, authors’ details and other confidential material. The PRH email was circulated with the subject line “Important: New Phishing Alert” and reads: “We have recently seen an increase in atempts to steal our manuscripts. This has occurred in multi- ple locations across the globe. The individuals


atempting to access these manuscripts have a sophisticated understanding of our business. We need to protect ourselves from these threats.” The email went on to say PRH staff should be “extremely careful” about confidential information such as “manuscripts, user IDs, passwords, social securit numbers, credit card numbers, bank account numbers, W-2s [US tax forms] and/or wire transfers”. PRH North America confirmed the email had been sent, with a spokesperson adding: “Like all companies, Penguin Random House takes all reports of phishing activit and email scams seriously and, when appropri- ate, notifies its employees to recognise and prevent such atempts. Employee awareness


Individuals attempting to access these manuscripts have a sophisticated understanding of our business. We need to protect ourselves


From an email sent to all PRH US staff


and training... is a critical component of our company’s cybersecurit program.” The Bookseller understands PRH UK has been similarly targeted, with fraudsters posing as literary agents and foreign-rights staff from seemingly legitimate email addresses. Other houses have also been affected. Pan Macmillan revealed it had also been targeted by scammers trying to access manuscripts, and has issued an internal briefing to staff. The head of another global publisher said that while there have long been scams targeting confidential information such as contracts, seeking manuscripts is a new development. Yet the scams have not dented the generally positive mood of the fair. Faber c.e.o. Stephen Page said it had been “solid... We’ve been doing good rights and export business. It feels as if the busyness is loaded towards the beginning of the week, with Thursday already feeling a litle like Fridays have in the past.” C+W m.d. Jake Smith-Bosanquet said he was pleased with the momentum built, partic- ularly around Lisa Taddeo’s Three Women (see below), which he said was “the most exciting literary non-fiction I’ve had at the fair.”


Reporting Heloise Wood, Natasha Onwuemezi


Seven- figure deal


Eight-year Three Lives tale hits seven figures


A piece of investiga- tive journalism about women’s sex lives has been signed in a seven-figure deal by Simon & Schuster US, with a six-figure UK deal looking likely. The “unique”


Horace Bent China’s swelling ranks Breaking news from FBF INSIDE


TheBookseller.com


Global bestseller charts Georgian bookselling JCB Prize literary director speaks Day Planner


non-fiction book, by American journalist and academic Lisa Taddeo, follows the sex lives of three women she inter- viewed and studied over an eight-year period. S&S US executive


editor Jofie Ferrari-Adler bought the title, Three Women, plus a novel and a collection of


short stories by Taddeo, from Jenn Joel at ICM for seven figures, The Bookseller understands. A six-publisher


auction for UK rights to Three Women (only) is ongoing, managed by Curtis Brown’s Cathryn Summerhayes, with the bidding expected to tip into six figures when it concludes by the end of the fair. “Taddeo is a mega talent and Three Women is so unique. I think it will have the same sort of impact as Tara Westover’s Educated,” Summerhayes said.


Friday


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