Category Archives: Romania

Months-long Interpol crackdown nets more than 1,000 online fraud arrests

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An Interpol operation to combat online fraud concluded with the arrests of 1,003 people and the interception of $27 million in illicit funds, according to the international police organization, which conducted the crackdown alongside 20 countries. Waged from June to September of this year, “Operation HAECHI-II” targeted online crime like romance scams, investment fraud and money laundering associated with illegal online gambling. But it also turned up a business email compromise scheme in Colombia and led to alerts about malware tied to the popular Netflix show “Squid Game.” Interpol said the crackdown demonstrated how cybercrime has risen to new levels since the outbreak of the coronavirus. It’s the latest international warning about how the pandemic has fueled a crime wave, even setting aside attacks targeting the health care sector or exploiting COVID-19 that have flourished over the past two years. “The results of Operation HAECHI-II show that the surge in […]

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White House set to lead 30 nations in ransomware discussions, sans Russia

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The White House on Wednesday and Thursday will convene meetings with representatives from more than 30 countries to discuss how to counter ransomware, leaving out the country the president most frequently criticizes for hosting gangs of hackers: Russia. “Participants will cover everything from efforts to improve national resilience, to experiences addressing the misuse of virtual currency to launder ransom payments, our respective efforts to disrupt and prosecute ransomware criminals and diplomacy as a tool to counter ransomware,” a senior administration official told reporters on Tuesday. The official didn’t specify why Russia didn’t get an invitation beyond unnamed “constraints.” The lack of an invitation this time “doesn’t preclude future opportunities for them to participate.” The U.S. also has other avenues for discussing ransomware with the Kremlin, the official said. The lack of an invitation for Russia exemplifies the tensions over when the U.S. might involve more adversarial nations in discussions over […]

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European police round up 23 suspected scammers accused of $1.2 million fraud

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An international police sting netted 23 arrests in three countries of suspects behind a business email compromise scheme that last year turned to capitalizing on COVID-19 fears, Europol announced on Wednesday. Together, the fraudsters are believed to have stolen at least $1.2 million from companies in 20 countries, mainly European and Asian nations, the European Union police agency said. The scheme relied on use of compromised email accounts for advance-payment fraud, Europol said. The suspects created fake emails and websites that resembled those of legitimate companies to trick victims into placing orders with them. They then laundered financial data through Romanian bank accounts to ultimately withdraw money from ATMs. “The fraud was run by an organised crime group which prior to the COVID-19 pandemic already illegally offered other fictitious products for sale online, such as wooden pellets,” Europol’s announcement said. “Last year the criminals changed their modus operandi and started […]

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Colombia arrests suspect wanted by US over Gozi virus

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By Waqas
The countries targeted by the Gozi virus included Finland, Germany, United States, and the United Kingdom with victims like NASA.
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Fighting, screaming as alleged ATM scammer known as ‘The Shark’ is arrested in Mexico

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Police in Mexico have arrested the alleged head of a financial fraud operation that used corrupt ATMs to steal more than $1 billion from tourists in recent years. Florian Tudor, a Romanian man perhaps better known as “The Shark,” was apprehended on Thursday when officials from Mexico’s attorney general’s office took him into custody. The incident erupted in wrestling, shouting and authorities carrying Tudor out of the building by his arms and legs, according to video published by news outlets in Mexico City. Mexico’s federal law enforcement suggested that Tudor’s associates tried to assault a police officer before also being arrested. Así fue la detención de Florian Tudor, líder de la mafia rumana en las Oficinas de la FGR en la CDMX Video: Especial pic.twitter.com/jZM2zcM4Mx — El Universal (@El_Universal_Mx) May 27, 2021 The fisticuffs mark the latest twist in a years-long crime spree that law enforcement officials and international journalists […]

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Malware service operators arrested; offered antivirus bypassing tools

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By Deeba Ahmed
The malware encryption service run by a Romanian duo helped hackers embed malicious code in legit software to bypass antivirus tools.
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Police arrest 2 in connection with CyberSeal, Dataprotector crime services

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Romanian police have arrested two people for allegedly distributing malicious software designed to evade anti-virus protections to more than 1,560 accused cybercriminals, Europol, the European Union’s law enforcement agency, said Friday. The international crackdown, which Europol and the FBI supported, targeted a decade-long scheme that provided crooks with relatively cheap access to victim computers, which they used to carry out information-stealing and ransomware attacks. The two Romanian suspects, whom authorities did not identify, allegedly ran “crypting” services designed to sneak malicious code past anti-virus software. The services, dubbed CyberSeal and Dataprotector, sold for between $40 to $300, according to Europol. The two suspects also allegedly offered cybercriminals access to a platform to test their malware against anti-virus software for as little as $7. It’s the latest effort by global law enforcement agencies to strike at the heart of infrastructure used by people accused of facilitating costly hacking schemes. Europol and Australian police […]

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Authorities bust hacker group planning to hit hospitals with ransomware

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By Deeba Ahmed
PentaGuard Hackers Crew was operating from Romania.
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Romanian police bust hackers allegedly plotting ransomware attacks on hospitals

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Romanian authorities said Friday they had disrupted a cybercriminal group that planned to conduct ransomware attacks on hospitals in the country. The hackers intended to pose as government officials and send malicious emails to public health institutions that purported to contain information on the coronavirus, according to the Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT), one of Romania’s top law enforcement agencies. Such ransomware attacks could disrupt the IT systems of hospitals, DIICOT said. But before that could happen, police and security officials said they searched the suspects’ properties in Romania and neighboring Moldova. All four suspects were arrested, ZDNet reported. The hackers planned to threaten hospitals to protest Romania’s state of emergency, which has restricted public gatherings during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Romanian news outlet Stirile Pro Tv. The threat of attacking hospitals would be a much more serious crime than the website defacements and other low-skill digital mischief usually […]

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