The Hague – US and European police said Thursday they have smashed a hugeinternational cybercrime network that used Russian malware to steal $100million (89 million euros) from tens of thousands of victims worldwide.
Prosecutions have been launched in Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine and the UnitedStates over the scam, while five Russians charged in the US remain on therun, the EU police agency Europol said.
The “organised crime network behind $100 million in malware attacks”targeted “more than 41,000 victims, primarily businesses and theirfinancial institutions,” Europol said.
Police in Germany and Bulgaria were also involved.
The cyber gang used GozNym malware to infect victims’ computers, stealtheir online banking login details and then siphon money from theiraccounts.
The stolen money was then laundered in US and other accounts.
Scott Brady, the US Attorney General for the western district ofPennsylvania where the US indictment was unsealed, said the operation wasan “unprecedented” international effort.
“Unsuspecting European and American victims thought they were clicking on asimple invoice, but were instead giving hackers access to their mostsensitive information,” Brady added.
The alleged leader of the GozNym criminal network, Alexander Konovolov, 35,of Tbilisi, who goes by the online name “NoNe”, was arrested in the formerSoviet state of Georgia, the US Department of Justice said.
His alleged technical assistant Marat Kazandjian, 31, aka “phant0m,” wasalso arrested in Georgia.
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Konovolov recruited hackers who advertised their services on”Russian-speaking online criminal forums”, and eventually controlled themalware-infected computers of more than 41,000 victims, Europol said.
The five Russians charged in the US included the alleged developer of themalware, identified as Vladimir Gorin, but they cannot be extraditedbecause Russia does not send suspects abroad.
Gorin “oversaw its creation, development, management and leasing to othercyber criminals” including the Georgian alleged leader of the group,Europol said.
One of the Russians, Viktor Eremenko, was arrested in Sri Lanka at therequest of US authorities in 2017 but “through the intervention of theRussian government” was freed on bail, after which he fled to Russia.
Bulgarian Krasimir Nikolov was arrested and extradited to the United Statesin 2016 and has already pleaded guilty to the charges in the indictment,the DOJ said.
Ukrainian police meanwhile arrested Gennady Kapkanov, 36, also known as”firestarter”, on suspicion of hosting a so-called “Avalanche” network thatprovided services to more than 200 cybercriminals including the Georgians.
He allegedly fired an assault rifle through the door of his apartment atpolice, the DOJ said.
Europol announced the smashing of the Avalanche network in a majoroperation in 2016, saying that it had infected half a million computers in188 countries.
The latest operation was a follow-up from that, Europol said. -APP/AFP
