Security News > 2022 > December > Police arrest 55 members of 'Black Panthers' SIM Swap gang
The Spanish National Police have arrested 55 members of the 'Black Panthers' cybercrime group, including one of the organization's leaders based in Barcelona.
The gang was operating four specialized activity cells dedicated to social engineering, vishing, phishing, and carding, having a very organized structure.
The arrested leader coordinated the cells and recruited new members and money mules.
The ultimate goal of the gang was to perform SIM swapping attacks, which is to port a target's phone number to the attacker's device.
The police's investigation also revealed that the 'Black Panther' gang had an active presence on the dark web, where their "Carding" cell bought ID and credit card numbers using cryptocurrency.
During the police raids in seven homes, 45 SIM cards, 11 mobile phones, four laptops, a hardware cryptocurrency wallet, and plenty of documentation relating to the crimes were found and confiscated.