Cyber crime in Russia

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/