Fifty-four people in the U.S. have been indicted in connection with a multinational bank phishing scheme, according to the Department of Justice, which said it’s the largest number of people ever charged in a U.S. cybercrime case. One of the suspects, a woman, was charged separately by the Los Angeles district attorney, according to an FBI spokesperson.
In addition, 47 people have been charged in Egypt in connection with the case, which has been named Operation Phish Phry.
The U.S. arrests were in California, Nevada and North Carolina, according to Thom Mrozek, a Department of Justice spokesperson. As of Thursday afternoon, 36 U.S. suspects had been taken into custody. The woman in Los Angeles was still at large.
Among those arrested was the alleged U.S. ringleader, Kenneth Joseph Lucas, who was named in each of the indictment’s 51 counts. Two other Californians, Nichole Michelle Merzi and Jonathan Preston Clark, were also arrested and described as key participants.
Wells Fargo, BOA Targeted
Lawmen described a fairly simple scheme in which the Egyptian suspects used bogus e-mails to lure victims to fake bank web sites, where they were tricked into revealing account numbers and other data. That information was sent to accomplices in the U.S., who transferred money to other accounts. Part of those funds were withdrawn and sent to the Egyptians.
“At the end of the day, it’s a very simple scheme,” Mrozek said. “I think it is very well understood by the average citizen. Everyone out there with a computer has seen e-mails that say, “Hi, we’re from your financial institution. Come to our web site and fill out this information.”
The scheme, Mrozek said, is known to have targeted the Bank of America and Wells Fargo, although other institutions may also have been targeted. The scam was led from Egypt, Mrozek added, and the amount…