Russian hackers plot international attacks on European banks

(Baonghean.vn)-Russian cybercriminals used malware on Android mobile devices to steal data from domestic banking customers and were planning attacks on European banks before being caught, investigators and sources familiar with the matter said on May 22.

Hackers tricked Russian bank customers into downloading malware through fake mobile banking apps. Photo: Reuters

According to a report released by cybersecurity firm Group-IB, which investigated the cyberattack with the Russian Interior Ministry, the hackers tricked Russian bank customers into downloading malware through fake mobile banking apps, or through pornography and e-commerce programs. The group of 16 suspects was arrested by Russian law enforcement agencies in November last year. The attack infected more than 1 million smartphones in Russia, an average of about 3,500 devices per day.

According to sources familiar with the matter, the hackers attacked clients of the state-owned Sberbank and stole money from accounts at Alfa Bank and the online payment company Qiwi, taking advantage of weaknesses in the companies’ SMS messaging services. After hacking into the customers’ phones, the hackers were able to send messages to the banks, which triggered money transfers to one of 6,000 bank accounts to receive the illicit sums, up to $120 per transfer.

Although operating only in Russia before their arrest, the hackers planned to attack major European banks, such as France's Credit Agricole, BNP Paribas and Societe General.

Russia's Alfa Bank. Photo: Reuters.

A BNP Paribas representative said the bank could not confirm the information, but said “the bank has all the necessary measures in place to deal with cyber attacks every day.” Meanwhile, Societe General and BNP Paribas declined to comment.

There have been growing questions about Russia’s links to cybercrime, after US intelligence officials accused Russian hackers of plotting to help Mr Trump win the US presidential election last year by attacking Democratic Party servers. The Kremlin has repeatedly denied these allegations./.

Lan Ha

(According to Reuters)