As a result of a joint operation in which law enforcement officers from Spain, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru participated, an international criminal network was neutralized.
Criminals used the iServer automated platform for phishing attacks to unlock stolen or lost mobile phones. The operation, codenamed “Kaerb” since 2022, has identified more than 483,000 victims worldwide, most of whom resided in Europe, North and South America.
The iServer platform operated on a “phishing as a service” model and allowed unskilled criminals (“unlockers”) to steal data to access victims’ mobile devices, bypassing the “Lost Mode” feature and disconnecting the devices from their owners’ accounts. Among the suspects was the administrator of the platform, an Argentine citizen who managed the activity for five years.
Also, iServer was used to send phishing messages via SMS, e-mail or voice calls. Criminals, having received data on mobile devices, sold their unlocking services to other criminal groups. According to Europol, more than 2,000 users were registered on the platform and during the investigation it was found that more than 1.2 million phones worldwide were attacked by the criminal network.
Operation Kaerb shows how international law enforcement agencies effectively cooperate in the fight against cybercrime. The detection and elimination of the iServer phishing platform is an important step towards reducing the number of crimes related to the theft of mobile phones and illegal access to them.
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