There has been a significant wave of reports of suspicious cryptocurrency transactions to the police in Japan, English-language local media outlet Jiji.com reports Dec. 6. According to the report, the National Police Agency (NPA) have revealed that there have been 5,944 reports to the Japanese police about suspected illegal uses of cryptocurrencies, such as money laundering, between January and October. By comparison, the number of such reports last year was 669, but their number increased “after the implementation in April of a law obliging the [cryptocurrency exchange] operators to make reports to the police if they detect dubious digital currency …

Bulgarian Gendarmerie forces and specialized prosecutors have arrested three hackers allegedly involved in stealing $5 million in crypto, Sofia-based newspaper 24 Chasa reports Monday, Nov. 26. Bulgarian police reportedly seized cryptocurrencies worth around $3 million, as well as the equipment allegedly used by the thefts, including computers, flash drives, and a hardware portfolio for storage of crypto data. Apart from notebooks containing crypto accounts, the prosecutors have also seized a car that was allegedly purchased with stolen funds and worth about 60,000 in Bulgarian Lev (BGN) (about $35,000). According to prosecutors, the suspects implemented new hacking methods and performed advanced …

On November 7, a security news and investigation blog KrebsOnSecurity published an interview with REACT Task Force, a California-based law enforcement group dedicated to fighting cybercrime. As per the article, members of REACT consider “SIM swapping” one of its “highest priorities” in a bid to fight cryptocurrency fraud. Here is how fraudsters use 99 cent SIM cards bought off eBay to steal millions worth of crypto with just one call. “SIM swapping”: what is it? SIM swapping is the process of making a telecom provider like, say, T-Mobile, transfer the victim’s phone number to a SIM card held by the …

U.S. law enforcement consider so-called “SIM swapping” one of its “highest priorities” in a bid to fight cryptocurrency fraud, security news and investigation blog KrebsonSecurity reported Nov. 7. Speaking to the publication, Samy Tarazi, a police sergeant in Santa Barbara and a supervisor of the REACT Task Force — a group dedicated to fighting cybercrime — said the number of instances of the crime had increased dramatically. “For the amounts being stolen and the number of people being successful at taking it, the numbers are probably historic,” he said. SIM swapping refers to the act of remotely hijacking the SIM …

The Cybercrime Department of the Turkish National Police has arrested 11 suspects in an alleged hack of crypto accounts, with victims reporting more than $80,000 in losses, major Turkish newspaper Hürriyet reported Friday, Nov. 2. According to the article, 14 individuals have reported to local prosecution authorities that their crypto wallets were hacked with their Bitcoin (BTC) transferred to other wallets. Following the complaints, the Istanbul police launched an investigation against a group of hackers that had allegedly compromised users’ emails, crypto wallets’ accounts data, and passwords. On Oct. 26, cybercrime unit agents detained 11 people in multiple locations in …

The co-founder of Indian crypto exchange Unocoin has been arrested shortly after setting up an allegedly unregistered Bitcoin (BTC) ATM machine in Bangalore, English-language daily Times of India reports Oct. 24. The 37-year-old co-founder, Harish BV, was apprehended by police after having reportedly installed the ATM kiosk at Kemp Fort Mall on Old Airport Road, together with fellow Unocoin co-founder Sathvik Viswanath. The latter has not been arrested, as per media reports. Indian business magazine Business Today (BT) cites a press statement from the Central Crime Branch (CCB), which claims the ATM installation did not receive “any permission from the …

New Zealand police have warned the public about online scams after an investor lost $320,000 NZD ($213,000 USD) to crypto fraudsters, the Canterbury police confirmed Wednesday, September 26. The unnamed investor, who made multiple investments in an online cryptocurrency scheme which turned out to be fraudulent, was attracted by its “extremely good returns,” a police report from the town of Canterbury explains. According to the report, which does not mention the kind of operation involved, those returns in the “investments in cryptocurrencies, such as bitcoin [...] soon began to decline.” When investments stopped due to the lack of returns, this …

Police in California have arrested an alleged hacker who stole Bitcoin (BTC) totalling more than $1 million by hijacking cellphones, investigative cybercrime blog Krebs on Security reported Wednesday, August 22. Citing a police report, the publication reveals Xzavyer Narvaez, 19, used “SIM swapping,” a technique also known as a “port out scam,” to reportedly steal cryptocurrency from victims’ devices. Over a period of several years, Narvaez and another suspect already under arrest used the funds to buy items such as luxury sports cars. From March to June 2018 alone, Narvaez’s account on cryptocurrency exchange Bittrex processed 157 BTC (around $1,009,000). …

South African Police are pursuing an alleged major cryptocurrency investment fraud, according to a police statement released yesterday, May 25. According to the statement, over 28,000 investors are said to have suffered losses exceeding 1 bln rand ($80.4 mln). The Hawks, an investigative unit of South Africa’s Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI), have outlined the case, which they say involves “BitCaw Trading Company, commonly known as BTC Global”: “[Targeted members of the public are believed to have been] encouraged by BTC Global agents to invest with promises of 2% interest per day, 14% per week and ultimately 50% per …

Employees of the local headquarters of the National Police in Rivne, Ukraine have been mining cryptocurrency at work, local news outlet 368.media reports today, May 22. Citing materials from criminal proceedings, 368.media reports that employees of the local Police’s Communications Department have been accused of stealing electricity to mine cryptocurrency in the workplace. The unnamed employees were allegedly mining cryptocurrency at work for four months. 368.Media notes that it is yet unclear how much electricity was reportedly stolen or what kind of cryptocurrency was being mined. 368.Media writes that employees at the National Police’s Department for Internal Security found cryptocurrency …

Police in Dubai have arrested ten members of a gang who reportedly stole 7 mln AED ($1.9 mln) in an armed Bitcoin heist in the Al Muraqqabat area of Dubai on Wednesday, Gulf News reports Sunday, April 29. Lieutenant Colonel Adel Al Joker, Director of Criminal Investigation Department (CID), told Gulf News: "The brothers searched randomly in the market to buy Bitcoin. The gang lured them claiming they can sell them Bitcoin.” The victims, reported to be two brothers, arranged to meet members of the gang to settle the transaction in an empty office, where they were then assaulted and …

The notorious “Bitcoin Baron” hacker has been remanded in custody in Arizona following a six-month police investigation. The serial DDoS attacker, whose real name is Randall Charles Tucker, has openly written and gone on record about his favored practice of taking down websites of government authorities he considers to have committed injustices. The episode which ultimately led to his arrest, Open Ledger reports, involved a YouTube video and an email sent to Arizona local authorities threatening to compromise their systems following the release of a convicted felon who later committed murder. “Hello, My name is Bitcoin Baron and I have …