US Charges Two Evil Corp Hackers with Bank Fraud

According to recent reports, the United States prosecutors have raised charges against two Russian hackers, both of whom are members of a hacking group known as Evil Corp. The two members, Igor Turashev and Maksim Yakubets, were accused of being leaders of a banking fraud scheme that impacted banks around the world.

US charges Russian 'Evil Corp' hackers with $100m banking scheme https://t.co/ujadwar1kV

— Guardian US (@GuardianUS) December 5, 2019

Stealing Over $100M

Furthermore, the two are believed to have stolen over $100 million during their operations. On top of that, the hackers were also sanctioned by the US treasury department for creating and releasing a malware called Dridex. This single malware stole swiping banking credentials from dozens of countries around the world, which resulted in the treasury naming Evil Corp one of the biggest hacking groups in history. The UK authorities also appear to be well aware of the two Evil Corp leaders. According to their statement, Yakubets (32) is a supercar-lover who owns a Lamborghini with a license plate that reads ‘thief’ in Russian. Another interesting detail that the UK shared about him is that he used to run operations from basements of various cafes in Moscow.

$5 Million-Large Bounty Placed on Yakubets

In the US, Evil Corp and its members got into a Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List. The country seems to be rather concerned about its Dridgex malware, which circulated through large phishing campaigns. So much so that the US treasury aims to shut down the group and stop the further distribution of the malware. To reach this goal, the United States authorities started a collaboration with Britain’s National Crime Agency, sharing details, photos, and videos of the hackers and their lifestyle. The danger that the group poses was estimated to be so great, that the British agency’s director-general, Lynne Owens, called them ‘the most significant cybercrime threat to the UK.’ For now, however, both of the Evil Corp’s leaders managed to evade the authorities. However, the authorities managed to identify 15 individuals with ties to the group, most of whom are in Moscow. Meanwhile, the US treasury announced that it will provide a $5 million-large reward for any information that might lead to the arrest of Yakubets, who is believed to be the group’s highest authority.

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