IT Security: USA's FBI arrests 100 in cyberfraud ring

“This was a major theft ring,” said Gordon Snow, assistant director of the FBI’s Cyber Division. “Global criminal activity on this scale is a threat to our financial infrastructure and it can only be effectively countered through the kind of international cooperation we have seen in this case.”

Using a Trojan horse virus known as Zeus, hackers in Eastern Europe infected computers around the world. The virus was carried in an e-mail, and when targeted individuals at businesses and municipalities opened the e-mail, the malicious software installed itself on the victimised computer, secretly capturing passwords, account numbers, and other data used to log into on-line banking accounts.

The hackers used this information to take over the victims’ bank accounts and make unauthorised transfers of thousands of dollars at a time, often routing the funds to other accounts controlled by a network of “money mules,” the FBI alleges. Many of the U.S. money mules were recruited from overseas. They created bank accounts using fake documents and phony names. Once the money was in their accounts, the mules could either wire it back to their bosses in Eastern Europe or turn it into cash and smuggle it out of the country. For their work, they were paid a commission.

In all, the global theft ring attempted to steal some USD220 million, and was actively involved in using Zeus to infect more computers. But beyond the actual and potential monetary loss, this case is significant because of the extraordinary level of cooperation among international law enforcement to stop the group. The investigation started in May 2009 when a suspicious pattern of financial transactions emerged.