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A Venezuelan gang described by US officials as "a ruthless terrorist organization" faces charges over alleged deployment of malware on ATMs across the country, illegally siphoning millions of dollars.
Two indictments were returned in Nebraska, collectively charging 54 alleged members of the Tren de Aragua (TdA) gang in connection with a spate of ATM jackpotting attacks.
The gang allegedly deployed a variant of Ploutus malware on ATMs across the US. Court documents assert that TdA members would travel in groups and compromise ATMs managed by certain banks and credit unions.
The alleged gang members would inspect each ATM for external security features before opening the machine's door, checking for alarms being triggered or law enforcement rushing to the scene.
Once they confirmed a machine could be safely tampered with, the suspects would either remove the ATM's hard drive and install the Ploutus variant before reinstalling it, or in some cases simply replace the hard drive with one that already had Ploutus installed. Other instances saw the malware deployed using external thumb drives.
www.theregister.com
Two indictments were returned in Nebraska, collectively charging 54 alleged members of the Tren de Aragua (TdA) gang in connection with a spate of ATM jackpotting attacks.
The gang allegedly deployed a variant of Ploutus malware on ATMs across the US. Court documents assert that TdA members would travel in groups and compromise ATMs managed by certain banks and credit unions.
The alleged gang members would inspect each ATM for external security features before opening the machine's door, checking for alarms being triggered or law enforcement rushing to the scene.
Once they confirmed a machine could be safely tampered with, the suspects would either remove the ATM's hard drive and install the Ploutus variant before reinstalling it, or in some cases simply replace the hard drive with one that already had Ploutus installed. Other instances saw the malware deployed using external thumb drives.
ATM jackpotting gang accused of unleashing Ploutus malware
: Latest charges join the mountain of indictments facing alleged Tren de Aragua members
