Interpol Seized $130 million from Cybercriminals Globally #nigeria | #nigeriascams | #lovescams

INTERPOL has just announced that it has seized $130 million worth of money and virtual assets from cybercriminals linked to various cybercrimes and money laundering operations. The operation is codenamed “HAECHI III” and lasted between June 28 and November 23, 2022, allowing INTERPOL to arrest almost a thousand suspects.

Interpol Seized $130 million from Cybercriminals Globally

In an official statement, Interpol revealed that the operation resulted in the arrest of 975 individuals and allowed investigators to resolve more than 1,600 cases. In addition, it also blocked almost 2,800 bank and virtual asset accounts linked to the illicit proceeds of online financial crimes.

The types of cybercrimes include romance scams, voice phishing, sextortion, investment fraud, and money laundering associated with illegal online gambling. Interpol also generated 95 notices and diffusions while also detecting sixteen new crime trends that will help law enforcement around the globe take more targeted action against cybercriminals. The new trends involve variations of romance scams and investment frauds that malicious actors constantly evolve to maintain an element of novelty.

Moreover, INTERPOL observed a rise in encrypted messaging apps used by scammers for exchanging information with victims in investment schemes.

Two highlights of operation HAECHI III are:

• The arrest of two Koreans in Greece and Italy who had embezzled $29,100,000 from 2,000 victims in Korea.
• The arrest of members of an India-based crime group that impersonated INTERPOL officers to call victims and trick them into sending them $159,000 in cryptocurrency.

INTERPOL’s announcement also underlines the effectiveness of its new anti-money laundering rapid response protocol mechanism (ARRP). Because of the ARRP, a victim Irish company got $1,250,000 million back. Since January 2022, when the pilot testing phase of ARRP started, the tool has helped recover $120,000,000 in cybercriminal proceeds.

Check Also: INTERPOL-Led Operation Takes Down Cyber Crime Organization ‘Black Axe’