The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the United States Department of Justice have cracked down on a technical support fraud scheme allegedly planned by an American citizen working with call centers in various cities in India during the last decade.
Michael Brian Cotter, 59, of Glendale, California, allegedly worked with Indian-based accomplices in the scheme believed to have defrauded hundreds of elderly US citizens, the US Department of Justice said in a statement.
The CBI moved in parallel with the United States Department of Justice by filing a complaint in a Florida court. The Indian agency filed a criminal case against five companies and conducted raids last month on companies and individuals in Delhi, Noida, Gurgaon and Jaipur who were allegedly involved in the scheme, according to the statement.
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Coordinated search operations were carried out in the offices of these companies and residences of the directors of the entities. “According to the CBI, incriminating digital evidence related to the scheme was collected and seized during the searches,” the statement added.
The US Department of Justice described the operation as the first parallel action by the US and Indian governments against fraud by elderly US citizens.
The statement quoted CBI officials as saying that the agency would continue its close collaboration with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and promote cooperation with US law enforcement agencies on cybercrime and cybersecurity.
CBI has been working to identify and dismantle transnational cyber fraud networks operated from India, the officials said.
In response to the complaint filed in the US, a federal court issued a temporary restraining order that ordered Cotter and five companies to stop participating in the tech support fraud scheme. The complaint was filed by the Consumer Protection Division of the Civil Division and the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida and the action was coordinated by the Transnational Elder Fraud Strike Force established last year to combat the foreign fraud schemes targeting older Americans.
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According to the complaint, those involved in the scheme communicated with US consumers through pop-up messages from the Internet that appeared to be security alerts from Microsoft or another reputable company. These messages fraudulently claimed that the consumer’s computer was infected by a virus and then purported to run a scan that “falsely confirmed the presence of a virus and malware.”
Consumers were provided a toll-free number to request assistance and were connected to call centers based in India that were allegedly involved in the fraud.
Call center employees asked victims to give them remote access to computers and said they had detected viruses or malware. The employees then falsely diagnosed nonexistent problems and allegedly asked victims to pay hundreds of dollars for unnecessary software and services.
Cotter allegedly facilitated the scheme through various companies, including Singapore-registered Global Digital Concierge Pte Ltd, formerly known as Tech Live Connect Pte Ltd, Nevada-registered Sensei Ventures Incorporated and NE Labs Inc, New York-registered Kevisoft LLC, and United Kingdom. Registered Kevisoft UK Ltd. Court-issued restraining order dismantled the US-based infrastructure, including websites and payment processing relationships.
The complaint alleged that, at least since 2011, Cotter worked with co-conspirators in India to operate the scheme, including registering website domains, creating shell companies, and establishing relationships with banks and payment processors to facilitate fundraising from victims. .
Individual victims reportedly paid hundreds to thousands of dollars for unnecessary technical support services.
Microsoft brought the plan to the attention of the Transnational Elder Fraud Strike Force.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Jeffrey Bossert Clark said: “The Justice Department sincerely appreciates CBI’s efforts to disrupt and prosecute technical support fraud, government imposter fraud, and all other schemes targeting the American public.”
“The FBI works with its local, state, federal and international partners to combat technical fraud schemes,” said Charles Spencer, deputy director of the FBI’s international operations division.
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