Millions have their data stolen in global fraud: Check here to see if you’re a victim

Twenty-four people were arrested today in a series of raids across the UK, US and Europe in an effort to bring down one of the world’s biggest criminal marketplaces. The online fraudsters who were arrested were behind the cyber crime platform Genesis Market, which sold login details, IP addresses and other data used for identity fraud.

Law enforcement agencies shut down Genesis Market in a coordinated operation but it is still believed that millions of people have had their data stolen, with tens of thousands of victims in just the UK alone. Users’ personal details would sell for less than $1 on the market place in a global operation which enabled widespread online fraud.

Genesis Market

Genesis Market was a service regularly used by criminals seeking to scam victims, with a database of 80 million user credentials and digital fingerprints stolen from over two million people.

The site traded in digital identities, selling ‘bots’ containing information stolen from victims’ devices using malware and infected software. Login information on sale included passwords for Facebook, PayPal, Netflix, Amazon, eBay, Uber and Airbnb accounts.

Robert Jones, director general of the National Economic Crime Centre at the NCA, explained it was simple to use, as per the BBC.

It was a very sophisticated website, very easy to use, with a wiki [website that can be modified or contributed to by users] telling you how to use it, and accessible on the open web and the dark web.

So you didn't need to be a sophisticated cyber actor to get into this. You just needed to be able to use a search engine, and then you could start committing crime.

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How to check if your data has been stolen

The bots gave the criminals access to various information such as cookies, saved logins and autofill form data. Information collected by the bots would happen in real time and so often buyers of the data would even be notified if any passwords or details had changed.

Members of the public can check whether their data has been compromised and accessed by criminals on Genesis Market by visiting www.politie.nl/checkyourhack and entering their email address.

If you have been affected you are encouraged to report this to Action Fraud via their online portal or Police Scotland by calling 101 if you live in Scotland, as per GB News.

Internet users who want to avoid fraud are encouraged to keep their operating systems up-to-date and use two-factor authentication (2FA). Strong passwords using multiple words and symbols are advised and users could also consider using a password manager for extra protection.

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Sources used:

- GB News 'Millions defrauded in global cyber scam - how to check if YOUR details have been stolen'

- BBC 'Genesis Market: Popular cybercrime website shut down by police'