New Tech Support Scam Targets English-speaking Countries

In the wake of a string of hacker stunts, some crooks are going old school by using phone directories and calling landlines to gain access to victims’ computers and steal their money.

According to a new survey by Microsoft Corp, scammers posing as computer security experts call people at home to tell them they are vulnerable to…

Nevada Man Sentenced to 12 Years for $1.5 M eBay Scam

A 40-year-old Nevada man has been sentenced to 12,5 years in prison and ordered to pay $1.5 million in restitution for defrauding more than 250 persons in an Internet fraud scheme involving high-end appliances.

Darin French was convicted Feb. 18, 2011, of 22 counts of mail fraud, 11 counts of wire fraud, and three counts of money laundering. His wife, Jennifer French, 38, was…

ID Theft Tops List of Consumers Complaints

A list of top consumer complaints in 2010 has revealed that identity theft continues to be the No. 1 complaints category for the 11th consecutive year.

According to the Federal Trade Commission, of 1,339,265 complaints received last year, 250,854 – or 19 percent – were related to identity theft.

Debt collection complaints came in second place, with 144,159…

Suspects Nabbed for Selling Fake Olympics Tickets Online

Five people were yesterday arrested in England as part of a police operation targeting illegal cyber crime associated with next week’s launch of the London 2012 Olympic Games tickets, according to The Telegraph.

Detective Nick Downing, chief inspector in charge of the so-called Operation Podium, said the aim was to disrupt organized criminal networks involved in illegally selling Games tickets.

“The victims are those people who get scammed, have their…

British Teen Credit Card Scammer Goes to Jail

A teenager and his friends, who stole $25 million from 130,000 hacked credit cards around the world, have been sentenced to prison for organizing “the largest English-language online cyber crime forum.”

Toronto Star reported that 19-year-old Nicholas Webber, the creator of Gh0stMarket.net, was sentenced to five years in prison.

Co-conspirator and software designer Gary Kelly, 21, was also ordered to spend five years in prison. Sensing his impending…

Man Spends 200K on Fake Online Girlfriend

Police in Illinois said a man “was in disbelief” when officers told him the online girlfriend he had had a 2.5-year online relationship with was not a real person, according to media reports.

Chicago Sun-Times reports the 48-year-old man called investigators Wednesday to say he believed the woman, to whom he had wired $200,000, had been kidnapped in London.

The man told police he had wired money…

Holy Matrimony: Husband and Wife Net $1.5 Million in eBay Scam

A scamming husband-and-wife team from Nevada has been found guilty of defrauding eBay customers who shelled out small fortunes for advertised high-end kitchen appliances they never received.

Darin Jerome French and Jennifer Lynn French were convicted last week of mail fraud, wire fraud and money laundering in connection with an online scheme in which the victims paid for what they thought was exclusive kitchenware, Daniel G. Bogden,…

Most Malaysians Unaware of Web Dangers

Most Malaysians do not know how to protect themselves on the Internet and fail to take necessary precaution to safeguard their personal information when banking and shopping online, according to an expert.

Criminologist and president of Malaysian Association of Certified Fraud Examiners Datuk Akhbar Satar said although citizens enjoyed the convenience of online banking and e-commerce, many failed to take measures to keep their confidential data secure.

Satar…

FBI Warns of Malware-Laced Email Sent to Private-sector Companies

Recent FBI analysis reveals that cyber criminals engaging in ACH/wire transfer fraud have targeted businesses by responding via email to job postings online.

The bureau said more than $150,000 was recently stolen from a U.S. business via unauthorized wire transfer as a result of an email the company received that contained malware. The malware was embedded in an email response to a job posting the business placed on an…

Cyber Crime on the Rise in Spain

Authorities in Malaga, Spain, have reported that child pornography and fraud account for more than half of cyber crime, Euro Weekly reports.

Since its creation more than 18 months ago, the Computer Crime Service of Malaga Public Prosecutor’s Office has  investigated almost 500 crimes. More than half of cases were related to fraud and the possession or distribution of child pornography. The remaining cases involved mainly slander,…