Karlsruhe. In order to prevent mass fraud on the Internet, cybercrime experts have blocked more than 1,400 illegal websites. There is a suspicion of so-called cyber trading fraud, the public prosecutor’s office said Karlsruhe The Baden-Württemberg Cybercrime Center, the Baden-Württemberg State Criminal Police Office (LKA) and the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (Bafin) worked together.
Mass phenomenon with increasing numbers
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The scam in question is called “cybertrading fraud”. According to information, it has developed into a mass phenomenon in recent years – with the number of cases constantly increasing. Guiding customers are said to invest large sums of money on fraudulent internet platforms, trusting in a lucrative investment opportunity.
In “Operation Heracles”, 1,406 active illegal domains have now been taken offline in cooperation with the European police authority Europol and Bulgarian law enforcement authorities, it said. “The now blocked domains were intended to deceive consumers and entice them into making supposed investments on manipulated trading platforms.”
“Crime as a Service” – money is usually lost
The perpetrators are currently unknown. According to the information, they act internationally and with a division of labor. The authorities refer to the procedure as “Crime as a Service”.
According to the information, the perpetrators create websites on which they offer a broad audience the opportunity to open a supposed trading account for trading financial instruments. “The perpetrators are deliberately targeting the German market and specifically targeting people who live and reside in Germany.” However, the operators do not have permission from Bafin for financial or investment services and banking transactions.
“In fact, the funds deposited are never used for capital investment,” warn the investigators. In addition, so-called brokers from call centers abroad call the victims and encourage them to invest more money. “Due to the professional approach of the perpetrators and the use of fake trading platforms, many victims do not notice that they are being defrauded for months and are motivated to make further deposits,” it said. The money is usually completely lost.
Hundreds of thousands of views since the seizure
The now confiscated domains were redirected to a so-called confiscation page hosted by the LKA: Anyone who accesses the Internet address will now receive a corresponding notice. According to information, such scam sites are clicked millions of times. Since the affected domains were redirected on October 3rd alone, the authorities have found around 866,000 hits on the taken over pages, according to the statement.
In a similar operation in June, the authorities blocked around 800 illegal domains. Since then, around 5.6 million user accesses have attempted to access it more than 20 million times.
“Cybercriminals cut off the juice”
The Baden-Württemberg Interior Minister Thomas Strobl explained: “Cybercrime threatens our economy, our data and trust in the rule of law. We will not allow that.” Laws also apply in the digital space, as the CDU politician emphasized. The success of the investigation shows that the Internet is not a legal vacuum. “We have thus cut off the cybercriminals’ juice and prevented further investment fraud.”
From the perspective of State Justice Minister Marion Gentges (CDU), it is clear “what is possible when the judiciary, police and supervisory authorities work hand in hand”. With the close cooperation in combating cybercrime, “we are setting nationwide standards in Baden-Württemberg,” she explained. (dpa)
