<html><head><meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body dir="auto"><div dir="ltr"><br><div style="font-weight: bold;font-size: large">INTERPOL raids hundreds of scammy call centers in sweep<br><div style="color: #666;font-weight: normal;font-size: small">Cyberscoop » / Tonya Riley</div></div><br><!--NEWSIFY_FULL_TEXT_NOT_UPDATED--><!--NEWSIFY_FULL_TEXT_START--><!--NEWSIFY_FULL_TEXT_END--><!--NEWSIFY_ORIGINAL_START--><div id="thumbnail"><a href="https://www.cyberscoop.com/interpol-raids-hundreds-of-scammy-call-centers-in-sweep/"><img src="https://www.cyberscoop.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/06/GettyImages-469556606.jpg?w=751" data-unique-identifier=""></a></div><p>A worldwide sweep of more than 1,770 call centers suspected of telecommunications and email scams resulted in the arrests of 2,000 suspected scammers money launderers, INTERPOL announced Wednesday. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.interpol.int/News-and-Events/News/2022/Hundreds-arrested-and-millions-seized-in-global-INTERPOL-operation-against-social-engineering-scams">The two-month operation</a>, which involved 76 countries, also intercepted $50 million worth of stolen funds.</p>
<p>The crackdown took place between March and May and focused on “social engineering scams,” a type of fraud defined by a criminal using a deceptive story to trick victims into giving away personal information that can be used for financial gain. </p>
<p>Such scams can include posing as a potential employer or even a romantic interest, or a so-called “<a href="https://www.cyberscoop.com/tag/romance-scams/">romance scam</a>.” The operation, dubbed Operation First Light 2022, included the arrest of a ring of eight suspects connected to an online marking job scam where fraudsters connected victims via social media promising jobs.</p>
<p>Law enforcement also raided suspects involved with business mail compromise (BEC) scams, one of the most costly forms of scams hitting the United States. In BEC fraud, <a href="https://www.cyberscoop.com/silverterrier-interpol-nigeria-bec/">hackers pose as a legitimate company employees</a> either through a fake or stolen account to order unauthorized money transfers.</p>
<p>INTERPOL investigators noticed some dark trends in the sweep. Victims aided by the operation included a teenager in Singapore who had been tricked into pretending to be kidnapped and wounded so his parents paid a ransom. Other trends that investigators observed included ties between the scams and human trafficking. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.interpol.int/en/News-and-Events/News/2015/More-than-500-arrested-in-INTERPOL-operation-targeting-phone-and-email-scams">INTERPOL has conducted Operation Searchlight since 2014</a>, but this is only the second time the operation involved law enforcement outside of Southeast Asia.</p>
<p>“The transnational and digital nature of different types of telecom and social engineering fraud continues to present grave challenges for local police authorities, because perpetrators operate from a different country or even continent than their victims and keep updating their fraud schemes,” Duan Daqi, head of the INTERPOL National Central Bureau in Beijing, said in a press release.</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://www.cyberscoop.com/interpol-raids-hundreds-of-scammy-call-centers-in-sweep/" rel="nofollow">INTERPOL raids hundreds of scammy call centers in sweep</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.cyberscoop.com" rel="nofollow">CyberScoop</a>.</p><!--NEWSIFY_ORIGINAL_END--><br><br>Original Article: <a href="https://www.cyberscoop.com/interpol-raids-hundreds-of-scammy-call-centers-in-sweep/">https://www.cyberscoop.com/interpol-raids-hundreds-of-scammy-call-centers-in-sweep/</a></div><br><br><div dir="ltr"><div><br></div>Jared Rimer<div>Check out my shows on Saturdays and Sundays right here on the mix. </div><div>Www.986themix.com for more details. Jared Rimer <br><div>Check out my show on www.986themix.com from 7 pm to 10 pm where we play Magnatune and other indipendant artists </div></div></div></body></html>