In the weekend, Dominik Iacono, 22, and
Dave Ackermann, 23, both German nationals, were arrested in Bangkok.
Supisarn Bhakdinarinath, Chief of the
Crime Suppression Division, said according to Bangkok Post that
44-year-old Khattiyaporn Kham-at filed a complaint saying that she
lost 700,000 baht after someone used her name to access her online
account through internet banking.
The CSD found the two Germans working
with a Russia-based group of hackers that specializes in stealing
login information and passwords of people using online banking.
The money robber’s course of action is
to access a victim’s computer trough a trojan virus coming from
something as simple as an e-mail. Afterwards they will monitor the
user’s online use including online banking. Then they will log on to
the victim’s bank account, add an additional account, and transfer
the money.
Immediately after this, another member
of the gang will stand by to withdraw the newly transferred money
from an ATM – before the transaction can be suspended. That is how
Siripong Timula, deputy chief of the Technological Crime Suppression
Division, explains it.
It is not year clear whether any
Scandinavians have experienced the hacking from the Russian/German
group. The group, though, taget victims in Europe, US, and Thailand.
So far this year they have robbed victims of the equivalent of around
100 million baht.
It is likely possible that also
Scandinavian people might have gotten significant amounts of cash
stolen by the gang.
If you know a Scandinavian whose bank
account has been hacked in Thailand, let us know.
