The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) announced the termination of the acclivities of hackers who stole an average of 1.2 million dollars a year from the accounts of banking institutions.
According to the investigation, the attackers found vulnerabilities in the electronic payment document management system of banks, illegally transferred money of clients to the accounts of fictitious persons or transferred it to cryptocurrency. Hackers created a bot network of infected computers to conduct illegal operations on the Internet. “Thus, the members of the group stole from the accounts of banking institutions on average 30 million hryvnias ($1.2 million) a year,” reported the press service of the SBU on Tuesday.
During 10 searches in Kiev and the region, as well as in Lviv, law enforcement officers seized computer equipment and mobile devices that were used by members of the group during illegal activities. Now the seized equipment is sent for examination.
A criminal case has been opened. If the attackers are found guilty, they face up to six years in prison.
It is worth noting that the Security Service of Ukraine recently exposed a large group of hackers associated with the Darknet.
Members of the group and third parties used server hosting equipment to conduct cyberattacks on the authorities and administration of Ukraine, critical infrastructure of Ukraine, as well as Ukrainian and world banks.
During the investigation, operatives detained the organizer of the group, who since 2011 provided its own server equipment for hosting, administering and distributing malware, bot networks and conducting cyberattacks.
In particular, DDoS attacks were carried out on strategic facilities in Ukraine and banking institutions of other states. The specified hosting was known on the Darknet network under the name “ProHoster” and “Bulletproof.space”.