[ISN] Brazilian police bust hacker gang

Wed Feb 15 03:12:46 EST 2006

http://www.theage.com.au/news/breaking/brazilian-police-bust-hacker-gang/2006/02/15/1139890794432.html

February 15, 2006 

Brazilian federal police arrested 41 hackers today accused of using 
the internet to divert millions of dollars out of other people's bank 
accounts.

Some 200 federal police were deployed in the operation to serve 65 
arrest warrants against a gang of hackers mostly operating in Campina 
Grande, some 1,800km north-east of Rio. Arrests also were made in six 
other states.

Police said over the past three months the gang invaded some 200 
accounts in six banks, stealing 10 million reals ($A6.38 million) 
using a so-called Trojan horse virus sent via email.

The program entered computers and, working in the background, copied 
account numbers and passwords without the users' knowledge.

Police said the leader of the gang was a 19-year-old and five of those 
arrested so far were minors. Police were still looking for 24 other 
alleged gang members.

While only a small percentage of Brazil's 185 million people can 
afford computers. Those who do have them are among the most active in 
the world in using online banking services and the internet.