New legal action against the scourge of online fraud impersonating an organization. Two 19-year-old young men were only arrested by investigators from the cybercrime brigade in mid-December, reveals Le Parisien. They are scheduled to be tried next April at an appearance with a prior admission of guilt.
Their online scams targeted the National Agency for Automated Crime Processing (Antai). They were based on phishing, the biggest computer threat to individuals, according to the public advocacy group Cybermalveillance.
Jean-Baptiste and Rayan, originally from Paris and Roubaix, are therefore suspected of having launched fraudulent SMS campaigns targeting this public entity for about nine months, between October 2022 and July 2023, responsible for the confiscation of fines.
1700 stolen card numbers
With some success, because according to the police quoted by the daily newspaper, they managed to obtain more than 1,700 bank card numbers. These were sold on to third parties for an amount of around 19,000 euros or used for online purchases.
Typically, the fraudulent SMS sent led victims to a fake website that mimicked Antai's. Internet users were then asked to enter their bank details to settle a fine. As Antai reminds us, the structure never sends SMS. Emails must come from a specific address. Finally, Antai recommends systematically checking the address of the website you are visiting.
It is unclear how the two young men were identified by police. However, this is not the first suspect arrested in connection with an online scam against Antai.
Malicious campaigns are becoming a scourge
In fact, Le Parisien had already reported on the arrest of a young man from Seine-et-Marne who was charged in a similar case at the end of April 2023. He was arrested by chance after leaving a suitcase containing cannabis sachets, three mobile phones and false documents in front of a regional audit chamber in Île-de-France.
“Sasori,” his nickname on Snapchat, then went to the police station to report the loss of his suitcase. Curious about his profile, investigators discovered 274,600 euros in cash, two luxury cars as well as bank cards and fake ID cards during a search of his apartment.
Significant gains compared to the growth of these campaigns, which have become real scourges polluting email inboxes and telephone messaging systems. For example, last March, StalkPhish, a phishing campaign detection and analysis service, counted an average of more than 16 malicious campaigns per day targeting Antai over the last month, that is, 646 unique domain names and 245 IP addresses.