CrowdStrike’s investigation shows that WARP PANDA initially infiltrated some victim networks as early as late 2023, later expanding operations.

The post CrowdStrike Identifies New China-Nexus Espionage Actor appeared first on TechRepublic.

Two Virginia brothers Muneeb and Sohaib Akhter, previously convicted of hacking the U.S. State Department, were rehired as federal contractors and are now charged with conspiring to steal sensitive data and destroy government databases after being fired. "Following the termination of their employment, the brothers allegedly sought to harm the company and its U.S. government customers by accessing computers without authorization, issuing commands to prevent others from modifying the databases before deletion, deleting databases, stealing information, and destroying evidence of their unlawful activities," the Justice Department said in a Wednesday press release. BleepingComputer reports: According to court documents, Muneeb Akhter deleted roughly 96 databases containing U.S. government information in February 2025, including Freedom of Information Act records and sensitive investigative documents from multiple federal agencies. One minute after deleting a Department of Homeland Security database, Muneeb Akhter also allegedly asked an artificial intelligence tool for instructions on clearing system logs after deleting a database. The two defendants also allegedly ran commands to prevent others from modifying the targeted databases before deletion, and destroyed evidence of their activities. The prosecutors added that both men wiped company laptops before returning them to the contractor and discussed cleaning out their house in anticipation of a law enforcement search. The complaint also claims that Muneeb Akhter stole IRS information from a virtual machine, including federal tax data and identifying information for at least 450 individuals, and stole Equal Employment Opportunity Commission information after being fired by the government contractor. Muneeb Akhter has been charged with conspiracy to commit computer fraud and destroy records, two counts of computer fraud, theft of U.S. government records, and two counts of aggravated identity theft. If found guilty, he faces a minimum of two years in prison for each aggravated identity theft count, with a maximum of 45 years on other charges. His brother, Sohaib, is charged with conspiracy to commit computer fraud and password trafficking, facing a maximum penalty of six years if convicted.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

CrowdStrike’s investigation shows that WARP PANDA initially infiltrated some victim networks as early as late 2023, later expanding operations.

The post CrowdStrike Identifies New China-Nexus Espionage Actor appeared first on TechRepublic.

Cloudflare recently mitigated a new record-breaking Aisuru attack that peaked at 14.1 Bpps.

The post Aisuru Botnet Powers Record DDoS Attack Peaking at 29 Tbps appeared first on SecurityWeek.

Qilin ransomware claims it stole internal data from the Church of Scientology, sharing 22 screenshots as proof. The breach remains unconfirmed by the organization.

Sophisticated online fraud techniques are growing more accessible to unskilled attackers, driven by AI tools and fraud-as-a-service platforms, according to Sumsub’s latest Identity Fraud Report.

LummaC2 infostealer infects North Korean hacker’s device, exposing ties to $1.4B Bybit heist and revealing tools, infrastructure and OPSEC failures.

Cleafy analysis reveals Albiriox, a new Android Malware-as-a-Service (MaaS) RAT that targets over 400 global banking and crypto apps. Learn how ODF fraud enables full device takeover.

A 21-year-old Ukrainian student was tortured and burned alive in Vienna after attackers forced him to reveal passwords to his crypto wallets, emptying his digital accounts before setting him on fire in his father’s Mercedes.

According to local reports, two suspects, a fellow student aged 19 and a 45-year-old Ukrainian national, fled to their home country with large amounts of cash but were arrested days later by Ukrainian authorities.

The victim, Danylo K., was the son of Kharkiv’s deputy mayor. His body was discovered on November 26 in a burned-out vehicle on Marlen-Haushofer-Weg in Vienna’s Donaustadt district after fire alarms alerted residents to the blaze around 12:30 a.m.

The charred remains were found in the back seat of a Mercedes S 350D bearing Ukrainian license plates beneath the Ostbahn railway line.

Torture Began in Hotel Garage, Ended in Flames

The attack started hours earlier in the underground parking garage of the Sofitel “SO/Vienna” hotel on Praterstraße, where the 19-year-old suspect ambushed his fellow student following a loud confrontation.

A hotel guest alerted reception after hearing the altercation, prompting police to be notified.

Passersby later noticed a large pool of blood in the stairwell leading to the parking area.

Investigators say Danylo was beaten severely in the garage before being forced into his father’s black Mercedes.

The assailants drove him to the Donaustadt location while subjecting him to extended torture to extract his crypto wallet passwords.

His teeth were knocked out during the assault as the violence escalated over several hours.

After gaining access to two crypto accounts, the attackers doused Danylo with gasoline purchased earlier from a Wagramer Strasse station.

He was set ablaze while crouched in the back seat, suffocating on his own blood and dying from head injuries and burns that consumed 80 percent of his body.

Colonel Gerhard Winkler of the State Criminal Police Office confirmed the autopsy findings indicated suffocation or heatstroke as the decisive factors. Forensic teams recovered a melted gasoline canister from the vehicle.

International Manhunt Tracked Suspects to Ukraine

Vienna police identified both suspects through surveillance footage captured at the hotel garage and the gas station where they purchased fuel canisters.

The pair crossed into Ukraine at precisely 9:07 a.m. the morning after the murder, triggering an international manhunt.

Ukrainian authorities arrested the suspects on November 29 after finding them in possession of enormous amounts of U.S. dollar bills.

Investigators believe the crypto was rapidly converted to cash following the robbery.

Austrian officials have transferred the case to Ukrainian jurisdiction, as extradition is not possible under existing agreements between the countries.

Police confirmed that Danylo’s crypto accounts were completely emptied after his murder, though authorities declined to specify the total sum stolen.

His family in Ukraine had reported him missing on November 25 after losing contact with him and discovering his digital wallets had been drained.

The wealthy student, who had been living temporarily in a luxurious apartment in Vienna’s Triiiple Tower on Landstrasse’s Danube Canal, was residing with his partner and their child at the time of his death.

Kharkiv Mayor Igor Terekhov declined to offer a detailed comment but acknowledged the tragedy, saying, “This is a human tragedy,” while noting the loss remained a family matter for his deputy.

Physical Crypto Crimes on The Rise

The murder marks Austria’s entry into a fast-escalating pattern of violent attacks targeting cryptocurrency holders worldwide.

Security researcher Jameson Lopp has documented over 60 such “wrench attacks” in 2025, representing a 169% surge since February and a 33% increase over all of 2024.

France leads global incidents with 14 confirmed cases, while violent robberies have been reported across Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom this year.

A Canadian family endured 13.5 hours of torture in a $1.6M #Bitcoin wrench attack; one attacker sentenced to 7 years;

#CryptoCrime #WrenchAttackhttps://t.co/W3OLBTuACr

— Cryptonews.com (@cryptonews) November 25, 2025

Last week, a British Columbia court detailed a 2024 home invasion where attackers tortured a family and stole $1.6 million in crypto after demanding 200 Bitcoin.

Similar patterns emerged in an Oxford robbery where masked assailants forced victims to transfer £1.1 million in crypto during a car ambush.

Analysts attribute the surge to rising crypto values, which have made holders high-value targets for criminals.

The post 21-Year-Old Burned Alive in Austria Over Crypto Assets appeared first on Cryptonews.

• DOJ seizes Burma-linked trading domains used for major crypto scam operations.
• Fraud network tied to Tai Chang compound used fake platforms to lure victims.
• FBI alerts led to app removals and Meta shutting 2,000+ accounts tied to scams.

The United States Justice Department has widened its action against a major scam network in Burma, focusing on how the group used fraudulent trading sites to run large crypto investment schemes.

The latest step involved seizing the domain tickmilleas.com, which looked like a functioning trading platform but was actually tied to the Tai Chang compound, also known as Casino Kosai, in Kyaukhat.

The update came in a December 2 announcement from the DOJ’s Office of Public Affairs and builds on a series of efforts aimed at disrupting transnational online fraud linked to Southeast Asia.

Crypto scam links widen

The takedown followed earlier moves in the same week when two additional domains were seized after being linked to the same Burma-based compound.

These domains formed a network of sites built to mimic legitimate investment services.

Each platform carried fabricated dashboards, fake transaction logs, and simulated returns that made victims believe their funds were being actively managed.

Tai Chang is part of a system of scam compounds that operate across the region.

These complexes are often controlled by criminal networks that rely on trafficked or coerced workers to run online scams.

They have grown rapidly in countries such as Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam, which have become hotspots for crypto fraud operations.

Many of the victims are targeted through trading sites that appear authentic but are designed to channel money into criminal groups.

Fraud networks shift tactics

The DOJ identified Tai Chang as having clear links to entities already sanctioned by the United States.

These include the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army and the Trans Asia International Holding Group.

Both were recently listed as Specially Designated Nationals because of their association with Chinese organised crime and their involvement in building scam centres across Southeast Asia.

Their participation has contributed to the spread of fraudulent investment operations throughout the region.

Investigators found that tickmilleas.com was deliberately designed to resemble a real investment platform.

It included dashboard features, performance charts, and false deposit records that suggested active trading.

Victims were also encouraged to download mobile applications from Google Play and the Apple App Store.

After the FBI alerted both companies, many of these applications were removed from the platforms.

Information provided by the agency also led to Meta shutting down more than 2,000 accounts across its social media platforms.

These accounts were used to direct users to the fraudulent investment sites and maintain the appearance of a legitimate trading ecosystem.

Seized domain examined

Although the tickmilleas.com domain was registered only in early November 2025, several individuals had already fallen victim to the scheme within the past month.

According to the DOJ, the platform was actively used to defraud people who believed they were participating in real crypto investments.

The site currently displays a notice confirming that it has been seized by law enforcement.

The DOJ stated that the action forms part of a broader effort to prevent US infrastructure from being used to support international fraud.

The coordinated takedowns of domains and malicious applications aim to cut off the digital channels that allow scam compounds to reach victims worldwide.

The post US crackdown exposes Burma crypto scam network using fake trading sites appeared first on CoinJournal.

Everest ransomware group claims it breached ASUS, stealing over 1TB of data including camera source code. ASUS has been given 21 hours to respond via Qtox.

Proxyearth is a new site that shows names, Aadhaar numbers, and live locations of users in India using only mobile numbers, raising serious privacy and security concerns.

More and more enterprises are opting for cloud-native application protection platforms (CNAPPs) instead of complex and hard-to-manage cloud security point solutions. Find out where your organization is on its CNAPP maturity journey.

Learn to elevate your cloud security strategy & overcome complexity with Vision One™.

Europol announced the seizure of Cryptomixer’s official website, as well as 25 million euros and 12 terabytes of data from the mixer's service.

Centralized mixing tools for obscuring crypto transactions are the latest target of authorities.

Swiss and German police shut down Cryptomixer, seizing servers, domains and 28M dollars in Bitcoin during an Europol backed action targeting crypto laundering.

Cryptomixer was targeted by law enforcement in Operation Olympia for facilitating cybercrime and money laundering. 

The post $29 Million Worth of Bitcoin Seized in Cryptomixer Takedown appeared first on SecurityWeek.