Thailand has arrested four European hackers for deploying ransomware on the networks of Swiss firms and stealing Bitcoins (BTC) worth $16 million.
The Cyber Crime and Immigration Police arrested the alleged hackers in Phuket on Monday after they reportedly deployed ransomware on the computer networks of 17 Swiss firms, leading to the theft of bitcoins from 1,000 global victims.
According to local media outlets, Pol Lt Gen Trairong Phiewphan, commissioner of the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau, shared in a press meeting that the four unnamed Europeans were arrested after his department’s officers collaborated with Phuket and immigration police to search locations in Phuket.
Trairong shared that the four individuals were wanted by both the US government and the Swiss Confederation after they allegedly hacked 17 Swiss firms by deploying Phobos ransomware on their computer networks between April 30, 2023, and October 26, 2024. The malware encrypted data on the networks and blocked the companies from accessing it unless a ransom was paid and a decryption key was provided by the hackers.
Moreover, the commissioner also mentioned that police had seized over 40 pieces of evidence from the suspects, including laptops, smartphones, and crypto wallets. He also noted that the Swiss Confederation had requested the Thai government deport the four suspects to face charges in Switzerland.
This arrest comes just days after law enforcement agencies from Thailand and China collaborated to dismantle a major cryptocurrency-driven human trafficking network, resulting in the arrest of two individuals and the seizure of $2.5 million in USDT.
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