A Ukrainian national who has been wanted by the U.S for over a decade has been arrested by Swiss authorities for his role in a notorious cybercriminal ring that stole millions of dollars from victims’ bank accounts using malware called Zeus.
Vyacheslav Igorevich Penchukov, who went by online pseudonyms “tank” and “father,” is alleged to have been involved in the day-to-day operations of the group. He was apprehended in Geneva on October 23, 2022, and is pending extradition to the U.S.
Details of the arrest were first reported by independent security journalist Brian Krebs.
Penchukov, along with Ivan Viktorovich Klepikov (aka “petrovich” and “nowhere”) and Alexey Dmitrievich Bron (aka “thehead”), was originally charged in the District of Nebraska in August 2012.
According to court documents released by the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) in 2014, Penchukov and eight other members of the cybercriminal group infected “thousands of business computers” with Zeus, which is capable of stealing passwords, account numbers, and other information relevant to log into online banking accounts.
images from Hacker News
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