Maltese 17-year-old arrested in Europol operation targeting crypto-hacking ring

A 17-year-old Maltese national was arrested during an international investigation coordinated by Europol into a series of scam attacks targeting high-profile celebrities in the United States.

In their own statement on the matter, Maltese police say that their involvement in the case began in November 2019, after the Cyber Crime Section received information from the US about a suspicion that a Maltese person allegedly illegally entered the Instagram profiles of several celebrities and subsequently began blackmailing them.

This person turned out to be part of a wider group of people being investigated by the US Secret Service.

The Cyber Crime Section, together with the Financial Crimes Investigations Department, intensified their investigations and, by means of a warrant, arrested the alleged suspect in November 2019.

Searches conducted at his residence led to the seizure of electronic devices, luxury clothing and other equipment allegedly purchased from stolen credit cards.

Initially, police believed that only the Maltese persons and several individuals in the US and United Kingdom were involved in the case. However, further investigations and analysis led authorities to establish that there may have been more members spread across different countries.

In Spring 2020, a Joint Cyber Action Task Force led by EUROPOL helped coordinate the collection and exchange of information so that other members could be identified. 

Through the information gathered, last Tuesday saw eight people arrested in Canada, the UK and Belgium.

READ ALSO: Malta police part of Europol operation to bust $100 million crypto-hacker ring

In total, the ten hackers arrested are suspected of having stolen $100 million worth of cryptocurrency in "SIM-swapping" attacks, which allowed them to gain access to victims' phones.

In a SIM-swapping attack, criminals can gain control over a SIM - the small computer chip that carries a phone number used to identify a customer on a telecommunication network. Usually a phone company is tricked into deactivating a working SIM and transferring its functions to one controlled by the hackers.

“This enabled (hackers) to steal money, cryptocurrencies and personal information, including contacts synced with online accounts,” Europol said in a press statement detailing the operation.

Investigations are still ongoing into the Maltese person involved in the case.