According to a report from Interpol, 1,003 cybercriminals spanning 22 jurisdictions were arrested over the past few months as part of an Interpol-coordinated operation against online financial crimes. Law enforcement across 20 different nations conducted raids and made arrests between June and September. The operation targeted those involved with forms of online fraud such as money laundering linked to online gambling, investment fraud, romance scams, and more. Roughly 2,350 bank accounts were seized as part of the operation, called Operation HAECHI-II.
Operation HAECHI-II specifically focused on taking down business email compromise and email fraud campaigns, which involved tricking staff to send large sums of money to alleged contractors or suppliers, however, the money is actually delivered to cybercriminals using spoofed emails. The FBI estimated that these types of scams have cost US businesses $1.8 million in 2020. Interpol also noted a case in Columbia where a textiles company lost more than $8 million after falling prey to a BEC scam.
Read More: 1,000 arrests made in online fraud crackdown, says Interpol
