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October 7th, 2009 - Posted by Caitlin

Today, the FBI charged 53 defendants with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, the largest number ever charged in a cybercrime case. 33 have already been arrested and the remainder are being sought by law enforcement. Egyptian authorities charged 47 defendants linked to the same phishing operation. The arrests follow a multinational investigation known as "Operation Phish Phry," which began in 2007.

According to the FBI, hackers in Egypt used phishing techniques to obtain banking information and other sensitive personal data, which they supplied to associates in the United States. The U.S. hackers used the stolen data to withdraw funds from their victims' bank accounts. They then wired a portion of the proceeds back to the hackers in Egypt.

Keith Bolcar, acting assistant director of the FBI in Los Angeles, commented, "The sophistication with which Phish Phry defendants operated represents an evolving and troubling paradigm in the way identity theft is now committed. Criminally savvy groups recruit here and abroad to pool tactics and skills necessary to commit organized theft facilitated by the computer, including hacking, fraud and identity theft, with a common greed and shared willingness to victimize Americans."

It is easy to dismiss phishing emails by catagorizing them as spam, a mere nuisance. But phishers are not harmless. They are collecting data that can and will be used for identity theft. When anyone requests your confidential account information, whether it's a username and password or banking information, pause and consider the circumstances before you obediently hand over the data. And, just in case your personal details do find their way out into the world, despite your best efforts, consider investing in identity theft protection.