The National Police of Ukraine, with the support of Europol, arrested a 29-year-old Ukrainian national in connection with running a sophisticated cryptojacking scheme, netting them over $2 million worth of cryptocurrencies via mining activities.
According to a press release published by the Europol, the arrest comes after months of intensive collaboration between Ukrainian authorities, Europol and a cloud provider, who worked tirelessly to identify and locate the individual behind the widespread cryptojacking operation.
During the investigation, three properties were searched, resulting in the discovery of substantial evidence linking the suspect to the cryptojacking scheme.
In cryptojacking scheme, threat actors gain unauthorized access to a cloud environment and abuse its computational power to mine cryptocurrencies.
The compromised account holders face huge cloud bills due to the abuse of their cloud resources.
The investigation started in January 2023 when a cloud provider approached Europol and shared information regarding compromised cloud user accounts.
Here are some of the recommendations provided by Europol to prevent becoming victims of a cryptojacking scheme:
Robust access controls: Implement strong authentication methods and access controls to prevent unauthorized access to cloud resources.
Continuous monitoring: Continuously monitor cloud environments for any signs of suspicious activities, unauthorized access, or unusual resource consumption.
Maintain security: Regularly update all cloud resources, including virtual machines and containers, with the latest security patches to address vulnerabilities.
Leverage security services: Utilize cloud service provider-offered security services and tools to enhance overall security posture.
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