US joins South Korea in cryptocurrency phishing scam investigation

Thanks to the cooperation, three suspects were found and the losses of some of their victims were compensated

23.12.2021 - 15:00

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What’s new? The South Korean prosecutors have confirmed that they are cooperating with the US authorities to investigate a cryptocurrency phishing scam. The South Korean Supreme Prosecutor's Office (SPO) has used intelligence provided by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to arrest three suspects in a cyber fraud case. This is reported by the Yonhap News Agency.

Information on the Yonhap News Agency website

“Cryptocurrency scams are difficult to track down. This is the first time that the prosecution has successfully carried out the whole process of investigation and damage recovery through international cooperation,” the news outlet quotes the SPO representative.

How did events develop? According to the indictment, the three alleged criminals are responsible for hacking the IDs and passwords of the South Korean and Japanese visitors to a Ripple-linked phishing site. They successfully did so over a seven-month period starting June 2017.

The authorities claim that the suspects had previously stolen more than 900 million won worth of cryptocurrencies, which now amounts to 2,35 billion won. The FBI passed the intelligence to the SPO, instructing the Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors Office to launch an investigation, which led to the recent discovery of the fraudsters. The SPO has successfully recovered approximately 140 million won, that is $118 000, from some fraud victims.

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