Hackers allegedly linked to global crime syndicate arrested in Singapore

Singapore authorities have arrested six people for suspected involvement in a global syndicate responsible for numerous cyber activities around the world.

Some people have the misconception that hackers are lonely individuals who may operate on their own in a dark basement room. However, the reality is so different from this romantic image that it is hard to believe.

When it comes to large hacker groups that operate worldwide, they are often part of organized crime or work on behalf of nation states. A good example are the groups that act on behalf of North Korea and were able to steal billions of dollars through ransomware attacks alone.

But these groups, like many others, do not operate in a vacuum. They need the support of other hackers who, for example, obtain the necessary credentials to penetrate a company's infrastructure and install the malware. This is all part of an industry that consists of many different parts spread all over the world.

The people arrested in Singapore, five Chinese nationals and one Singaporean, are accused of being part of such a group.

“On 9 September 2024, approximately 160 officers from the Criminal Investigation Department, Police Intelligence Division, Special Operations Command and Internal Security Division of the Singapore Police Force conducted simultaneous raids in several residential areas across the island,” authorities said. “The operation resulted in the arrest of the six men who are believed to be linked to a global syndicate conducting malicious cyber activities.”

“All six men will be remanded in custody for further investigation while police continue to investigate their local network of contacts and the global syndicate they are associated with,” Singapore authorities added.

The individuals are suspected of conducting malicious cyber operations worldwide from Singapore. The raid also resulted in the seizure of numerous devices, along with stolen personal data from people outside Singapore, various computer hacking tools, including malware control software (such as PlugX), and $850,000 in cryptocurrency.