Officers also seized multiple mobile phones, an encrypted desktop computer and a Huawei internet dongle, which they allege was used in the scam.
Salopek, 30, did not apply for bail in Downing Centre Local Court on Thursday after he was charged on Wednesday with a string of offences in connection to the alleged fraud. His co-accused, Jay McCrea, 39, remains before the courts.
“Our cybercrime investigators [are] continuing to identify victims and piece together the extent of the fraud,” Marden said. A spokesperson for the AFP said the total losses “are in the hundreds of thousands of dollars”. Investigations are ongoing, and further arrests have not been ruled out.
Cybercrime expert Simon Smith said large-scale SIM boxes were “quite alarming”, in that “it’s very easy to get a temporary throw-away SIM or a hundred” and write a few lines of code to generate a swath of phone numbers for the device to target.
Smith said people were easily tricked by SMS scams because there is no way to differentiate between a legitimate number and one used by a scammer.
His only advice is emphatic: “Don’t bloody click on any links.”
Instead, if people receive a text message about a security issue or any other problem, they should contact the bank or other institution separately.
Smith said people “love convenience”, which is what helps scammers. “It’s so much more convenient later on to not have to go chasing your identity and change all your details.”
The AFP said…
