FluBot, the malicious program that stole bank accounts with a single SMS

The European police agency Europol announced on Wednesday the dismantling of the FluBot spy program, which attacked Android mobile phones via SMS to steal sensitive informationpasswords or bank details.

flubotwhich caused major incidents in Spain and Finland, was “one of the most widespread malware on mobile phones to date”, Europol said in a statement. The program “could spread like wildfire thanks to its ability to access the contacts of an infected cell phone,” the police agency added.

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Victims using phones with an operating system Android of Google received an SMS asking users to click on a link and install an application to monitor the delivery of a package or listen to fake voice messages, an AFP spokesman told Europol. Cybercriminals were later able to steal bank account data or cryptocurrency accounts.

In May, the Dutch police succeeded in “disrupting” the infrastructure of flubot after an international investigation carried out by eleven countries, according to Europol. But police are still trying to identify those responsible for the crime, the spokesman added.

FluBot spread quickly thanks to its easy access to cell phone contacts. (Pixabay/)

In order not to spread its methods, Europol did not specify how it had dismantled the program. “This infrastructure flubot it is now under the control of the security forces, which have put an end to the destructive spiral,” Europol congratulated.

flubot, identified at the end of 2020, spread the following year and compromised a “large number of devices in the world”, with incidents in Spain and Finland, according to Europol. The agency did not say how many devices had been infected or how much money had been stolen.

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The countries involved in the investigation were Australia, Belgium, Finland, Hungary, Ireland, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the Netherlands, as well as the United States secret service, coordinated by the Europol Cybercrime Center.

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More ➡️ https://t.co/YcMC5XRS6o pic.twitter.com/ksPuSHk6aW

— Europol (@Europol) June 1, 2022

Source: Elcomercio