US Prosecutors Charge 36 Suspects in Global Cybercrime Ring | WPN World People News

Federal prosecutors on Wednesday unsealed indictments of 36 suspects in a global cybercrime ring that defrauded victims of more than $530 million.

The defendants are from the United States, Australia, France, Italy, Kosovo, Serbia and the United Kingdom.

The Justice Department called it one of the biggest cyberfraud cases it has ever tackled.

"The actions of computer hackers and identity thieves not only harm countless innocent Americans, but the threat they pose to our financial system and global commerce cannot be overstated," Derek Benner, an official with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations units, said Wednesday. "The criminals involved in such schemes may think they can escape detection behindtheir computer screens here and overseas. But as this case shows, cyberspace is not a refuge from justice."

U.S. officials said the suspects called their enterprise the Infraud Organization and operated under the slogan "In Fraud We Trust."

They allegedly used automated vending sites to steal identities, debit and credit card numbers, and financial and banking information.

Prosecutors said the operation stole more than $530 million and could have taken as much as $2.2 billion if it had not been stopped.

Source: Voice of America