Nation
Interpol Nabs Three Nigerians Over Cyber Scam
The International Police Organisation has apprehended three Nigerians for alleged involvement in a cyber scam targeting governments and private firms in over 150 countries.
They were said to be part of a criminal organisation that allegedly compromised thousands of government and private companies across the world.
A statement published on the Interpol website on Wednesday said the arrest was carried out by a joint operation of the Interpol, a cybersecurity company, Group-IB, and the Nigeria Police Force, tagged ‘Operation Falcon.’
Explaining the suspects’ mode of operation, Interpol said the gang focused on mass email phishing campaigns distributing popular malware strains under the guise of purchasing orders, product inquiries, and even COVID-19 aid while impersonating legitimate companies.
The statement read, “The suspects are alleged to have developed phishing links, domains, and mass mailing campaigns in which they impersonated representatives of organisations.
“They, then, used these campaigns to disseminate 26 malware programmes, spyware, and remote access tools, including AgentTesla, Loki, Azorult, Spartan, and the nanocore and Remcos Remote Access Trojans.
“These programmes were used to infiltrate and monitor the systems of victim organisations and individuals, before launching scams and syphoning funds.
“According to Group-IB, the prolific gang is believed to have compromised government and private sector companies in more than 150 countries since 2017.”
Interpol’s cybercrime director, Craig Jones was quoted as saying that the public-private relationships are important in disrupting virtual crimes, stressing that “cooperation in investigation will upset well-established criminal business models.”
Based on the infrastructure that the attackers used and their techniques, Interpol disclosed that Group-IB was also able to establish that the gang was divided into subgroups with a number of individuals still at large.
“The findings on other suspected gang members, whom Group-IB was able to track down, have been shared with Interpol’s Cybercrime Directorate. The investigation continues,” it added.
The Alliance Française Port Harcourt in conjunction with the Embassy of France Nigeria over the weekend joined the globe to campaign against the 2025 gender- based violence (GBV) with the theme: “16 Days of Activism Against Gender- Based Voice”
The event which took place at the event Hall of the Alliance Française Port Harcourt was in collaboration with the Female in Gaming Network, ( FIGN) and partnership with Nexal a body that seeks to promote online safety and responsible digital behaviour.
The Tide reports that the project which was aimed at promoting digital safety and girls inclusion in Gaming, with the initiative tagged ‘Gameover Gender- Base Violence’was part of the global campaign against gender- based Violence.
The activity which experienced a flavour of festivity was full of fun and excitements as participants took part in tournaments on popular digital games such as Mario kart and EAFC 25, with an intent to creating safer and more inclusive digital spaces.
The Director of the Alliance Française Port Harcourt, Mrs Marina Lacal said that these activities were designed to encourage inclusion of girls, team work and fair play on online gaming spaces, saying that the gaming world reflects these inequalities, where female players are often under represented.
According to her the main objectives of the initiative was to provide a supportive environment for girls and female in gaming network.
“GameOverGBV” is a project created to reshape this landscape by offering an innovative inclusiveness of girls on online digital Gaming community and digital environments that provide opportunities for creativity, learning and connection, but also fight against Gender-Based Violence Digital Gaming,”she said
She however, explained that the Digital Game, sport competitions, was launched to strengthen social and digital skills through games, workshops, and raise awareness among all young participants about respect, equality and digital citizenship.
The Tide News reports that in Port Harcourt, the competition brought together 100 young participants from three major universities: University of Port Harcourt, ( UNIPORT),Ignatius Ajuru University of Education(IAUE) and Rivers State University (RSU)as well as students from four selected secondary schools, Oginigba comprehensive Secondary.School, Vine lnternational, Virgo predicanda lnternational, and Excellent Montessori Secondary school.
“This is an approach where girls and boys can learn, play and collaborate in a more respectful and safe space for young women, while ensuring a safe, enjoyable and respectful digital environment. It also expose young women to cyberbullying, exclusion, sexist comments and online hate,” Mrs. Lacal said.
Earlier, a game developer Sophia Nei and her. team had engaged participants in an interactive session with the theme: “Can Video Games Be Safe Spaces For Girls?”
However, Mrs Nei and her team educated the girls on the benefits and violence on online digital gaming and urged them ( participants)to learn to say ‘No’ to Online hate, sexist and cyber bullying, while encouraging them(students) to stand up for themselves by reporting such issues to the appropriate authority.
Highlight of the competition was the awarding of prizes to winners by the Director of Alliance Française, Mrs Marina Lacal.
