A coordinated covert operation of officers of the Nigeria Police and the INTERPOL has led to the arrest of a cybercrime syndicate. The ten-days operation which ran from 13th – 22nd December, 2021 was simultaneously carried out in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; Lagos in Lagos state; and Asaba in Delta State.
The NPF Cybercrime Unit and INTERPOL National Central Bureau (NCB) in Nigeria were able to identify and arrest the targeted members of the Silver Terrier gang ahead of time with intelligence provided by the INTERPOL.
Field operations were preceded by an intelligence exchange and analysis phase, where the Cybercrime Unit of NPF used INTERPOL’S secure global communication network – i24/7 to work with the Police Force across the globe and also help in the investigation of BEC scams linked to Nigeria.
The prolific cybercrime network, Silver Terrier, is a network known for Business E-mail Compromise (BEC) scams which have harmed thousands of companies globally. Preliminary analysis confirmed that the suspect’s collective involvement in BEC criminal schemes associated with more than 50,000 victims.
One of the suspects arrested has in his possession more than 800,000 potential victims’ domains credentials on his laptop. Another suspect had been monitoring conversation between 16 companies and their clients and diverting funds to Silver Terrier whenever the companies’ monetary transaction is about to be made.
Speaking on the success, AIG (Dr.) Garba Baba Umar psc, B.Ed (LA), MLC, MIRSS
Vice President INTERPOL (Africa) and the
Head of National Central Bureau Abuja said that with this major arrest, Operation Falcon II sends a clear message that cybercrime will have serious repercussions. Anyone involved in BEC Fraud should desist.
The Director DACORA (WAPIS) added that this is particularly because it has intensified its onslaught against the threat actors while identifying and analyzing every cyber trace they leave.
He also advised that members of the public should protect themselves at a time like this when there is increased threats. ‘Businesses and organization are reminded to protect themselves from online scams by the following advice featured in INTERPOL’s #JustOneClick, #WashYourcyberHands, #OnlineCrimeIsRealCrime and #BECarefulcampaigns’
