A
Nigerian suspected of being in charge of a network of internet scammers,
stealing around US$60m (£45m), has been arrested in Port Harcourt, Rivers
State.
According
to the international police organization, the 40-year-old Nigerian known as 'Mike',
the head of an international criminal network behind thousands of online frauds
was arrested in a joint operation by INTERPOL and the Nigerian Economic and
Financial Crime Commission (EFCC).
The
Nigerian national is believed to be behind scams totalling more than US$60
million involving hundreds of victims worldwide. In one case a target was
conned into paying out US$15.4 million.
The
network compromised email accounts of small to medium businesses around the
world including in Australia, Canada, India, Malaysia, Romania, South Africa,
Thailand and the US, with the financial victims mainly other companies dealing
with these compromised accounts.
Heading
a network of at least 40 individuals across Nigeria, Malaysia and South Africa
which both provided malware and carried out the frauds, the alleged mastermind
also had money laundering contacts in China, Europe and the US who provided
bank account details for the illicit cash flow.
Following
his arrest in Port Harcourt in southern Nigeria, a forensic examination of
devices seized by the EFCC showed he had been involved in a range of criminal
activities including business e-mail compromise (BEC) and romance scams.
The
main two types of scam run by the 40-year-old targeted businesses were payment
diversion fraud – where a supplier’s email would be compromised and fake
messages would then be sent to the buyer with instructions for payment to a
bank account under the criminal’s control – and ‘CEO fraud’.
In
CEO fraud, the email account of a high-level executive is compromised and a
request for a wire transfer is sent to another employee who has been identified
as responsible for handling these requests. The money is then paid into a
designated bank account held by the criminal.
‘Mike’
first came onto the law enforcement radar through a report provided to INTERPOL
by Trend Micro, one of its strategic partners at the INTERPOL Global Complex
for Innovation (IGCI) in Singapore. This, combined with actionable analysis and
intelligence from Fortinet Fortiguard Labs in 2015, enabled specialists at the
INTERPOL Digital Crime Centre, including experts from Cyber Defense Institute
based at the IGCI, and the EFCC to locate the suspect in Nigeria, resulting in
his arrest in June.
Abdul
Chukkol, Head of the EFCC’s Cybercrime Section said the transnational nature of
business e-mail compromise makes it complex to crack, but the arrest sent a
clear signal that Nigeria could not be considered a safe haven for criminals.
"For
a long time we have said in order to be effective, the fight against cybercrime
must rely on public-private partnerships and international cooperation,"
said Mr Chukkol.
"The
success of this operation is the result of close cooperation between INTERPOL
and the EFCC, whose understanding of the Nigerian environment made it possible
to disrupt the criminal organization’s network traversing many countries,
targeting individuals and companies," added Mr Chukkol.
Noboru
Nakatani, Executive Director of the IGCI warned that BEC poses a significant
and growing threat, with tens of thousands of companies victimized in recent
years.
"The
public, and especially businesses, need to be alert to this type of
cyber-enabled fraud" said Mr Nakatani. "Basic security protocols such
as two-factor authentication and verification by other means before making a
money transfer are essential to reduce the risk of falling victim to these
scams,"
"It
is exactly through this type of public and private sector cooperation that
INTERPOL will continue to help member countries in bringing cybercriminals to
justice no matter where they are," concluded Mr Nakatani.
The
40-year-old, along with a 38-year-old also arrested by Nigerian authorities,
faces charges including hacking, conspiracy and obtaining money under false
pretences. Both are currently on administrative bail as the investigation
continues.
Source: www.interpol.com
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