Posted by Virus Bulletin on Apr 1, 2007
Met Police website spoofed by 419 scammers.
Last month saw the appearance of the latest 419 scamming trick: 'anti-terrorist certificates' sold via a fake version of the London Metropolitan Police website complete with fake anti-terrorist hotline number.
The scam referred recipients to what appeared, to all intents and purposes, to be the official website of the London Met. To the untrained eye, the genuine and fake sites were almost impossible to tell apart (see http://momusings.com/momusings/2007/03/police-website-line-up-whos-imposter.html). However, the scammers' version of the site included a fake anti-terrorist hotline number.
According to 419-tracking organization Ultrascan Advanced Global Investigations, the scam directed victims to the fake website to purchase so-called 'anti-terrorist certificates', needed to secure payments from abroad.
The fake site, which was hosted in Australia, has now been closed down by the service provider. According to a spokesperson from the Met, the case has also been reported to Australia's High Tech Crime Unit for investigation.
Posted on 01 April 2007 by Virus Bulletin
