Cyber Crime in Russia
Group-IB is one of the leading companies in fraud
prevention, cybercrime and hi-tech crime investigations. Their key activities of the company are Cyber
Intelligence and Threat Prevention, Information Security, Assessment and
Vulnerability Research, Computer Forensics, Cybercrime and Hi-Tech crimes investigations,
Innovative software products development for monitoring, detection and
prevention of emerging cyberthreats.
- Cyber crime
is any criminal activity that involves a computer and the internet. In Russia it was reported in 2011 that cyber
crime “raked in over $4 billion“ ( Radio,2012). Different methods of cyber crime include
sexting, cyberbullying, online grooming, reputation management, privacy management,
e-security (AFP Australian Federal Police, 2014).
One such case of cyber crime was the use of the Mevade
malware, which has a Tor command and control functionality to hide operations,
the crooks went after entities in the US, UK, Canada and India, the security
firm says. The campaign started around 23 July, and may also have involved
actors in Ukraine were also involved.
The most lucrative form of Russian cybercrime last year was
online fraud, which brought in nearly a billion dollars, followed by spam which
topped $830 million.
Previously, the company noted, the market was comprised of
individual hackers, but they have now consolidated their efforts and
traditional organized crime groups are clamouring for a piece of the action.
"There are nearly 400 million victims of cybercrime
each year”( Krawczyk,2013).
Cyber-crime getting more common than we’d like to admit,
says cyber security firm FireEye of California.
And it is designed to attack a computer or a device near you. Computers are not limited to personal
computers it also includes cloud computing, servers, mobile phones, and mobile
devices.
While cybercrime is certainly not exclusive to Russia, the
rise of cybercrime in the region was facilitated by the rise and fall of the
Soviet Union, as well as an abundance of highly skilled technical personnel,
coupled with limited lucrative employment opportunities, notes FireEye
researchers. Russia is teeming with networks of talented cybercriminals. With
little risk of prosecution, in Russia in particular, home grown cybercrime
networks continue to flourish. (Raposa,2014).
The best form of protection is limiting computer contact,
staying off line and prioritise humans contact between humans. So from the point of view of preserving
secrets the most primitive methods are preferable: a person’s hand and a pen,
or a typewriter.”
We can’t help but admire the simplicity of the Russian
solution; indeed, it appears to be catching on, with the Indian High Commission
reportedly abandoning the cloud for ink impressions ( Eddy, 2014).
References
AFP Australian Federal Police. (2014). Crime prevention. Retrieved
from http://www.afp.gov.au/policing/cybercrime/crime-prevention.aspx
Eddy,K. ( 2014). Far out Friday: The Russian solution to
cyber crime. Retrieved from http://www.riskmanagementmagazine.com.au/news/far-out-friday-the-russian-solution-to-cyber-crime-183389.aspx
Krawczyk, K. (2013). Microsoft plans to be the Batman of
tech security with new cybercrime center. Retrieved from http://www.digitaltrends.com/computing/new-microsoft-cyber-crime-center-revealed-malware-citadel-ukraine-russia/#ixzz2sSCXX9o4
Radio,K. (2012). Russian Cyber Criminals Rake in Billions.
Retrieved from http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/technology/2012/04/russian-cyber-criminals-rake-in-billions/
Raposa,K. ( 2014). As Cyber Crime Matures, More Hacked
Accounts Expected. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/kenrapoza/2014/02/03/as-cyber-crime-matures-more-hacked-accounts-expected/
