Security News > 2020 > March > Europol Arrests 26 SIM Swapping Fraudsters For Stealing Over $3 Million

Europol, along with the Spanish and the Romanian national police, has arrested 26 individuals in connection with the theft of over €3.5 million by hijacking people's phone numbers via SIM swapping attacks.

The law enforcement agencies arrested 12 and 14 people in Spain and Romania, respectively, as part of a joint operation against two different groups of SIM swappers, Europol said.

The development comes as SIM swapping attacks are emerging as one of the biggest threats to telecom operators and mobile users alike.

In addition to leveraging malicious Trojans to steal victims' banking credentials, the SIM swappers went on to apply for a duplicate SIM card by contacting their mobile service providers and providing fake documents.

Last November, two Massachusetts men were arrested for employing SIM swapping attacks to hijack victims' social media accounts and steal more than $550,000 in cryptocurrency.

News URL

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheHackersNews/~3/L6pVoftN-co/sim-swapping-fraud-hacking.html