US and its allies apprehend suspected cybercrime mastermind, confiscate millions worth of luxury vehicles in significant Covid-19 scam crackdown

A 35-year-old Chinese man has been arrested in Singapore in connection with a global cybercriminal network that defrauded the US government of billions of dollars, the Justice Department announced on Wednesday. YunHe Wang is accused of helping assemble a botnet, a network of infected computers, that was used for various criminal activities including bomb threats, child exploitation materials, and financial fraud.

The botnet was also used to submit fake applications for federal relief during the coronavirus pandemic, resulting in losses of approximately $5.9 billion. Wang allegedly used the money earned from renting the botnet to purchase luxury assets and real estate properties across East Asia, the Middle East, the Caribbean, and the US.

Law enforcement agents seized millions of dollars worth of watches, sports cars, and real estate properties in connection with the case. Wang is facing extradition to the US, and investigations into other potential suspects are ongoing.

The cybercriminal network used virtual private networking (VPN) to spread their malicious code, infecting millions of IP addresses worldwide. The case is just one example of opportunistic fraud that has been rampant since the emergence of Covid-19, with fraudsters exploiting federal economic stimulus packages like the CARES Act.

The Secret Service has named a senior official as National Pandemic Fraud Recovery Coordinator to address the issue, and ongoing investigations into Covid-19 related fraud cases continue. The IRS has reported investigating tax and money laundering cases related to Covid-19 fraud potentially worth billions of dollars.