• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

As Big Tech showers employees with perks to win the talent war, Nvidia built a nearly $5 trillion company by making people pay for their own lunch

2

MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year

3

Current price of oil as of July 1, 2026

1

As Big Tech showers employees with perks to win the talent war, Nvidia built a nearly $5 trillion company by making people pay for their own lunch

2

MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year

3

Current price of oil as of July 1, 2026
TechChanging Face of Security

Kingpin Behind Suspected $60 Million Online Scams Nabbed

Robert Hackett
By
Robert Hackett
Robert Hackett
Down Arrow Button Icon
Robert Hackett
By
Robert Hackett
Robert Hackett
Down Arrow Button Icon
August 1, 2016, 4:00 AM ET
SINGAPORE-INTERPOL-INTERNET-CRIME
A logo at the newly completed Interpol Global Complex for Innovation building is seen during the inauguration opening ceremony in Singapore on April 13, 2015. The Interpol Global Centre for Innovation opened its doors with officials hoping it will strengthen global efforts to fight increasingly tech-savvy international criminals. AFP PHOTO / ROSLAN RAHMAN (Photo credit should read ROSLAN RAHMAN/AFP/Getty Images)Roslan Rahman—AFP via Getty Images
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

An international law enforcement collaboration believes it has apprehended the ringleader behind a wave of online scams that stole more than $60 million over a three-month period from businesses and individuals across the globe.

The suspect was a 40-year-old Nigerian citizen, sources briefed on the matter told Fortune. The man, left unnamed due to the ongoing nature of the investigation, allegedly led a network of 40 coconspirators based in Nigeria, Malaysia, and South Africa that helped carry out a variety of lucrative cybercriminal schemes. The suspect also allegedly orchestrated money launderers in China, Europe, and the U.S.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

Two of the suspect’s main scams involved what’s known as business email compromise and CEO fraud. In the first, the fraudsters hijacked or spoofed a supplier’s email address, requested payments from target businesses, and directed the funds to phony bank accounts. In the second, the scammers—pretending to be top execs—sent emails to unwitting employees requesting fraudulent wire transfers.

Nine of the diverted payments exceeded $100,000 a piece, an investigator told Fortune. One case alone lost an organization $15.4 million.

Interpol and Nigeria’s economic and financial crime commission arrested the suspect in the Nigerian city of Port Harcourt in June, according to the authorities. Interpol said it first received a tipoff about the alleged scammer through a report provided by Trend Micro (TMICY), a cybersecurity firm based in Japan. That information, supplemented with threat intelligence sourced from the Sunnyvale, Calif.-based cybersecurity firm Fortinet (FTNT), enabled the team to identify and catch the alleged crook.

For more on cybercrime, watch:

“The financial gains for cybercrime are ludicrous,” Derek Manky, global security strategist at Fortinet, told Fortune on a phone call. In April the Federal Bureau of Investigation warned businesses that online scams of the type described above have been on the rise, costing organizations more than an estimated $2.3 billion between Oct. 2013 and Feb. of this year.

“You have to sever the head,” Manky said. “You have to go from top to bottom taking out the kingpins to take out organized crime.”

Noboru Nakatani, executive director of Interpol’s Global Complex for Innovation, an R&D facility based in Singapore, advised businesses in a statement to follow basic security measures, such as implementing two-factor authentication along with other means of verifications to avoid falling victim to similar schemes. He added: “Arrests like this are made possible by partnerships between members of the security community which come together with the common goal of making the internet a safer place.”

“The success of this operation is the result of close cooperation,” echoed Abdul Chukkol, head of the Nigerian commission’s cybercrime unit, in a statement.

Another man, a 38-year-old allegedly involved in the cybercriminal operation, was arrested as part of the sting as well. The pair of suspects, currently on bail, face charges for hacking, conspiracy, and obtaining money under false pretenses, according to statements provided to Fortune.

About the Author
Robert Hackett
By Robert Hackett
Instagram iconLinkedIn iconTwitter icon
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

Why build AI data centers in a cornfield when Saudi Arabia has cheap oil and cheaper power?
Big TechMeta
Why build AI data centers in a cornfield when Saudi Arabia has cheap oil and cheaper power?
By Catherina GioinoJuly 2, 2026
17 minutes ago
Scott Bessent, US treasury secretary, during an Economic Club of New York (ECNY) event in New York, US, on Tuesday, June 23, 2026.
Economynational debt
Elon Musk says AI is the only way to fix the $40 trillion U.S. debt crisis—but a new study says even the most optimistic scenario won’t fill the hole
By Eleanor PringleJuly 2, 2026
2 hours ago
A test of Anduril's Altius drone.
NewslettersTerm Sheet
Defense tech could be entering its awkward teenage years. Is the boom a bubble?
By Allie GarfinkleJuly 2, 2026
3 hours ago
em
Commentary250 Years of Innovation
America’s 250th birthday has Elon Musk and a record IPO. Its 15th had Alexander Hamilton — and a stock market bubble
By Owen LamontJuly 2, 2026
3 hours ago
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg (left) and CTO Andrew "Boz" Bosworth in Menlo Park, California, on Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2025. (Photo: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg/Getty Images)
NewslettersFortune Tech
Meta prepares to join the cloud infrastructure fray
By Andrew NuscaJuly 2, 2026
3 hours ago
Sam Altman seeks new world order for AI as OpenAI slowly loses ground to Google and Anthropic 
AIMarkets
Sam Altman seeks new world order for AI as OpenAI slowly loses ground to Google and Anthropic 
By Jim EdwardsJuly 2, 2026
4 hours ago

Most Popular

As Big Tech showers employees with perks to win the talent war, Nvidia built a nearly $5 trillion company by making people pay for their own lunch
Big Tech
As Big Tech showers employees with perks to win the talent war, Nvidia built a nearly $5 trillion company by making people pay for their own lunch
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezJuly 1, 2026
1 day ago
MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year
Success
MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year
By Sydney LakeJune 25, 2026
7 days ago
Current price of oil as of July 1, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of July 1, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerJuly 1, 2026
1 day ago
The Supreme Court's birthright citizenship ruling hands the U.S. economy a $7.7 trillion win
Newsletters
The Supreme Court's birthright citizenship ruling hands the U.S. economy a $7.7 trillion win
By Diane BradyJuly 1, 2026
1 day ago
Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster
Success
Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster
By Preston ForeJune 27, 2026
5 days ago
Elon Musk on MacKenzie Scott giving away $26 billion of her fortune: 'Sadly,' it makes the world a worse place
Success
Elon Musk on MacKenzie Scott giving away $26 billion of her fortune: 'Sadly,' it makes the world a worse place
By Sydney LakeJune 29, 2026
3 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.