The US Department of Justice has indicted 36 alleged members of a cybergang accused of causing more than $530 million in losses through the acquisition and sale of, among other things, compromised debit and credit cards and banking information.
The 36 alleged members of the Infraud Organization were arrested in seven countries: the US, UK, Australia, France, Italy, Kosovo and Serbia. They face charges including identity theft, wire fraud, bank fraud and money laundering.
According to the indictment, the Infraud Organization was created in October 2010 by Ukrainian Svyatoslav Bondarenko aka “Obnon” aka “Rector” aka “Helkern”. Under the slogan, “In Fraud We Trust,” the gang directed traffic and potential purchasers to the automated vending sites of its members, which served as online conduits to traffic in stolen means of identification, stolen financial and banking information, malware, and other illicit goods.
It also provided an escrow service to facilitate illicit digital currency transactions among its members and employed screening protocols that purported to ensure only high quality vendors of stolen information were allowed to advertise to members.
According to the indictment, Infraud members held defined roles within the group's hierarchy, with administrators, super moderators, moderators, vendors, VIP members and members all holding different positions.
As of last March, there were 10,901 registered members, while over its seven years, the organization inflicted about $2.2 billion in intended losses, and more than $530 million in actual losses, on financial institutions, merchants, and private individuals, say authorities.