A new report has revealed that cyber criminals are making use of the same types of offshore schemes as those uncovered in the recent ‘Panama Papers’ scandal. Following the scandal, Trend Micro researchers investigated the popularity of shell companies on the darknet. The researchers discovered that several firms offer ‘off-the-shelf’ services to set up shell companies. “We have not seen much user feedback about these offshoring services on underground communities. Among the services associated with this are setting up a fake company with a named representative, putting in place a trust agreement, registering bank accounts in an offshore country, and conducting false transactions as proof that accounts are active. According to Trend Micro, other services include registering credit cards tied to bank accounts, setting up a WebMoney passport, and offering money-laundering options. In addition to these services, there is also evidence suggesting that cybercrooks have been using bitcoin for illicit purposes.
A new report has revealed that cyber criminals are making use of the same types of offshore schemes as those uncovered in the recent ‘Panama Papers’ scandal. Following the scandal, Trend Micro researchers investigated the popularity of shell companies on the darknet. The researchers discovered that several firms offer ‘off-the-shelf’ services to set up shell companies. Among the services associated with this are setting up a fake company with a named representative, putting in place a trust agreement, registering bank accounts in an offshore country, and conducting false transactions as proof that accounts are active. According to Trend Micro, other services include registering credit cards tied to bank accounts, setting up a WebMoney passport, and offering money-laundering options. In addition to these services, there is also evidence suggesting that cybercrooks have been using bitcoin for illicit purposes.