A man has been arrested after being caught selling hundreds of thousands of stolen account details for online subscription services, including Netflix, Spotify and Hulu.
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) says the man, who is 21 years old and based in Sydney, was arrested earlier this week, and made an estimated AUD $300,000 (~£160,000) selling these credentials through a now defunct website called WickedGen, as well as other similar sites (via Cnet).
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“The account details were obtained through credential stuffing, which sees a list of previously stolen or leaked usernames, email addresses and corresponding passwords re-used and sold for unauthorised access,” the AFP said.
“The accounts details were from unknowing victims in Australia and internationally, including the United States.”
The AFP says it opened investigations after receiving a tip-off about WickedGen from the FBI in May 2018. The site apparently operated for around two years, and claimed to have the stolen credentials of more than 120,000 people, as well as the details of nearly a million user accounts.
“This arrest is another example of the value and importance of our relationship with the FBI. These partnerships – both internationally and domestically – are critical in law enforcement being able to respond to rapidly-evolving and increasingly global crime types,” said the AFP’s Chris Goldsmid.
He added: “These types of offences can often be a precursor to more insidious forms of data theft and manipulation, which can have greater consequences for the victims involved. We are working closely with the affected companies and thank them for their cooperation with investigations to date.”
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You can find out more details about the case, which highlights the importance of updating your login details on a regular basis, here.
The best way to find out if any of your passwords have been stolen is by using the Have I Been Pwned tool.
Have you ever been caught up in a similar sounding scam? Let us know on Twitter @TrustedReviews.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
