Security News > 2022 > December > Australia arrests 'Pig Butchering' suspects for stealing $100 million
The Australian Federal Police have arrested four suspected members of a financial investment scam syndicate estimated to have stolen $100 million from victims worldwide.
AFP says the investment scam group manipulated legitimate electronic trading platforms in combination with "Pig butchering."
"The victims are then directed to both fraudulent and legitimate investment applications that deal in foreign exchange and cryptocurrency, which have been maliciously manipulated to show a false positive return on investments." - AFP. "Pig butchering" is a high-yield scam that tricks people into investing money on fake investment portals that generate fake profits.
The crime ring used employment sites, messaging platforms, and dating sites to approach victims and gain their trust before they were led to fake investment sites.
Whenever you are approached with an investment opportunity, remember that there are no guaranteed returns, so if that promise is involved, it's likely a scam.
Fake investment apps also usually generate warnings on antivirus tools as they are not digitally signed or released by a legitimate software vendor.