AFP cracks down on cybercrime with arrests
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The news: Five individuals have been arrested in Australia as part of a global police operation targeting users of cybercrime platform known as LabHost.
The numbers: The Australian offenders are allegedly among 10,000 cybercriminals using the platform around the world as a way to scam individuals and gain access to online banking logins, credit card details and passwords, through texts and emails.
At the time of the global police takedown, LabHost had more than 40,000 phishing domains and more than 10,000 global active users. Australia is understood to be a top three user country.
The context: Cybercriminals could sign up to LabHost for $270 per month, according to the Australian Federal Police. In exchange, cybercriminals were provided with complete ‘phishing kits’, that included the ability to host a phishing website and generate email and text content.
What they said: The AFP said "global activity will continue over the coming weeks and further arrests and website domain takedowns are anticipated in Australia and overseas".
“LabHost alone had the potential to cause $28 million in harm to the Australians through the sale of stolen Australian credentials,” said acting assistant commissioner Chris Goldsmid.
The source: AFP
