December 20, 2023 at 06:51AM
In a six-month international operation named HAECHI IV, authorities from 34 countries arrested 3,500 suspects and seized $300 million in assets related to various online financial frauds like business email compromise, investment fraud, and online gambling. Europol also released a report underscoring the growing threat of investment fraud and BEC schemes in internet organized crime.
Key meeting takeaways from the notes are:
– Interpol announced the success of Operation HAECHI IV, resulting in the arrest of 3,500 suspects across 34 countries and the seizure of about $300 million in assets related to various online financial fraud schemes.
– Notably, the operation focused on combatting business email compromise (BEC), ecommerce fraud, investment fraud, voice phishing, money laundering associated with illegal online gambling, romance scams, and online sextortion schemes.
– Authorities were able to block over 82,000 bank accounts, freeze more than 360 virtual asset accounts, and confiscate $199 million in hard currency plus approximately $101 million in cryptocurrency.
– Operation HAECHI IV predominantly targeted investment fraud, BEC, and ecommerce fraud schemes, with roughly 75% of the cases falling under these categories.
– Interpol’s executive director, Stephen Kavanagh, highlighted the significance of the seized funds in illustrating the scale of transnational organized crime’s impact on global security and economic stability.
– Additionally, Europol’s 2023 Internet organized crime threat assessment emphasized the prevalence of investment fraud, BEC schemes, and cybercrime markets thriving on stolen data and credentials. The report also noted the reliance of cybercriminals on various services and infrastructure providers who facilitate illicit activities.
Please let me know if there are specific action points or further details that you would like to highlight from these meeting notes.