Security News > 2023 > August > Classiscam fraud-as-a-service expands, now targets banks and 251 brands
Group-IB has published new information on the operation today, reporting that Classiscam has made $64.5 million in combined earnings from scamming users of classifieds sites and stealing their money and payment card details.
The number of targeted brands has also grown from 169 brands last year to 251 this year, and there are now 393 criminal gangs targeting users in 79 countries, coordinating in one of the operation's 1,366 Telegram channels.
Internet users from the UK lost the highest average amount per Classiscam transaction, at $865, while the global average stands at $353. Group-IB reports that Classiscam has become much more automated, using Telegram bots to create phishing and scam ad pages in just a few seconds.
Now, the Classiscam phishing sites also perform balance checks to assess the maximum charges they can incur on a victim and feature fake bank login pages to steal people's e-banking account credentials.
Group-IB's analysts have seen 35 scam groups using phishing sites that mimic the login pages of 63 banks in 14 countries, including financial institutes in Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Poland, Singapore, and Spain.
The Classiscam operation continues to grow and become more effective in stealing people's money, which will only encourage more cybercriminals to join its ranks.