On Tuesday, September 10, a 19-year-old man was arrested in Amersford on suspicion of participating in fraud involving phishing. This was not the first time he had been apprehended for such crimes, with three previous instances on record.
The police inquiry was triggered by a report from a bank detailing a series of phishing incidents targeting its customers. The scammers employed a tactic dubbed “1 Center Fraud”, wherein they posed as buyers on a platform for second-hand goods and lured sellers into clicking a link to confirm a 1-cent transaction. However, the link actually led to a phishing site where unsuspecting sellers unknowingly divulged their bank details, granting the fraudster access to their accounts.
Using this deceptive method, the fraudster attempted to siphon almost 100,000 euros from various accounts. Fortunately, the majority of these suspicious transactions were halted by the bank before they could be finalized.
As part of the police investigation, digital evidence allowed authorities to narrow down the suspect’s trail. Upon arresting him, a search was conducted at his residence where several data storage devices were confiscated. The investigation is ongoing, with police diligently gathering additional proof.