In a police announcement (translation here), the Ukrainian cyber police, working with state police investigators, say they have arrested three members of a “criminal group” accused of stealing & attempting to sell over 100 million emails and Instagram accounts. The database of stolen accounts contained data on more than 100 million Internet users from all over the world.
The suspects used the brute-force method to break the passwords of the stolen accounts and would then sell them on the dark web. The group operated in different regions of Ukraine, coordinating their efforts, with each specializing in different aspect of the operation.
During the law enforcement raid, police conducted seven searches across multiple cities, seizing more than 70 pieces of computer equipment, 14 mobile phones, bank cards, and cash.
Emily Phelps, Director, Cyware had this to say:
“Cybercriminals are often opportunistic, seeking the path of least resistance. Strong passphrases and multifactor authentication cannot be considered optional extras but fundamental requirements to defend against cyberthreats. The coordination behind such illicit activities emphasizes the need for continuous vigilance, collaboration, and advanced cybersecurity solutions.”
This should serve as a warning to those of you who like to use an easy to remember, not very complex password for everything. There are groups like this one who are out to leverage the fact that you do that. Thus complex passwords, multi factor authentication, or every passwordless solutions should be the way to go to avoid being pwned by a group like this one.
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This entry was posted on March 21, 2024 at 8:50 am and is filed under Commentary with tags Instagram. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
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Ukrainian Hackers Busted For Stealing & Selling Access To 100 Million Instagram Accounts
In a police announcement (translation here), the Ukrainian cyber police, working with state police investigators, say they have arrested three members of a “criminal group” accused of stealing & attempting to sell over 100 million emails and Instagram accounts. The database of stolen accounts contained data on more than 100 million Internet users from all over the world.
The suspects used the brute-force method to break the passwords of the stolen accounts and would then sell them on the dark web. The group operated in different regions of Ukraine, coordinating their efforts, with each specializing in different aspect of the operation.
During the law enforcement raid, police conducted seven searches across multiple cities, seizing more than 70 pieces of computer equipment, 14 mobile phones, bank cards, and cash.
Emily Phelps, Director, Cyware had this to say:
“Cybercriminals are often opportunistic, seeking the path of least resistance. Strong passphrases and multifactor authentication cannot be considered optional extras but fundamental requirements to defend against cyberthreats. The coordination behind such illicit activities emphasizes the need for continuous vigilance, collaboration, and advanced cybersecurity solutions.”
This should serve as a warning to those of you who like to use an easy to remember, not very complex password for everything. There are groups like this one who are out to leverage the fact that you do that. Thus complex passwords, multi factor authentication, or every passwordless solutions should be the way to go to avoid being pwned by a group like this one.
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This entry was posted on March 21, 2024 at 8:50 am and is filed under Commentary with tags Instagram. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.