Big Russian Cybercrime Network Busted In Spain | TechTree.com

Big Russian Cybercrime Network Busted In Spain

The criminals used to pose as police and persuade online users to pay "fines" for abusive use of the Internet.

 

The European police agency Europol, has busted a cybercrime network lead by Russians, who used to extort money from online users, according to NYTimes. Those arrested from their headquarters based in the popular resort of Costa del Sol include six Russians, two Ukrainians, and two Georgians. Earlier in December last year, the Russian head of the network was arrested in Dubai. The network was said to be one of the most efficient cybercrime organisations till now.

The type of threat posed by this group is categorised as "police-themed ransomware", which is in effect, plants a malware into the victim's PC and uses it as a means of extorting money by threatening with false legal consequences from unsuspecting users. Once the malware was installed on a user's computer, these hackers used to lock out the computer, pose online as police, issue a fake warning message, and demand €100 (~Rs 7200) to unlock it. The investigators have stated that the malware could be picking up keywords and actually tracking users indulging in shady activities online, making the threat from the group believable to the user.

While it is known that the main operations used to take place from the Spanish city, it has been speculated that there could be other cells being operated from other parts of the world. The victims being targeted were mainly said to be from around 30 European countries. It is also likely that online users in India are also affected by such ransomware, although we don't have official statistics and figures about the same.


Big Russian Cybercrime Network Busted In Spain


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