US, European authorities carry out sweeping crackdown on prolific QQAAZZ cybercriminal group

U.S. and European law enforcement have embarked on a coordinated crackdown on an Eastern European cybercriminal group accused of trying to launder tens of millions of dollars stolen from victims. Fourteen people have been charged for allegedly laundering money for QQAAZZ, as the group is known, the U.S. Justice Department announced Thursday. Meanwhile, houses were raided across Europe, a number of arrests were made in Latvia and a cryptocurrency mining operation was seized in Bulgaria. It’s the most significant law enforcement offensive to date against QQAAZZ, whose members are allegedly from Bulgaria, Latvia, Georgia, Romania and elsewhere. The network has allegedly operated hundreds of bank accounts throughout the world to launder money stolen by criminal hackers, sometimes converting it to cryptocurrency. They stand accused of hawking their “bank drops service” on Russia-speaking cybercriminals forums. “The criminal gangs behind some of the world’s most harmful malware families are among those cybercriminal groups […]

The post US, European authorities carry out sweeping crackdown on prolific QQAAZZ cybercriminal group appeared first on CyberScoop.

Continue reading US, European authorities carry out sweeping crackdown on prolific QQAAZZ cybercriminal group

European police seize BestMixer, saying it helped launder $200 million worth of cryptocurrency

European law enforcement has seized BestMixer.io, a bitcoin mixing website that authorities say served as one of the busiest cryptocurrency laundering services in the world. The Dutch Fiscal Information and Investigation Service (FIOD) shut down BestMixer Wednesday with help from Europol and investigative support from McAfee. BestMixer promised to shuffle bitcoin, bitcoin cash and litecoins that may have been “tainted” for their association in internet crime. The site helped turn over some 27,000 bitcoins, worth at least $200 million, since it began operating in May 2018, according to Europol. Virtual currency laundering is an essential part of the cybercriminal ecosystem. After hackers make off with a ransomware payment, they need to obfuscate that money before investigators trace those funds on the blockchain — bitcoin’s public ledger — where all transactions are visible. Security researchers used this technique to probe the hackers behind the 2017 WannaCry ransomware spree, for example. “A […]

The post European police seize BestMixer, saying it helped launder $200 million worth of cryptocurrency appeared first on CyberScoop.

Continue reading European police seize BestMixer, saying it helped launder $200 million worth of cryptocurrency