Eight members of an international crime ring have been indicted by a grand jury in Atlanta, Georgia, for stealing $9 million US dollars from cities around the world.

Hackers in the crime ring breached the security codes used by an international payment service, RBS WorldPay, which is based in the southeastern city of Atlanta, home to many technically-oriented companies. The security codes protected the rechargeable debit cards utilized to convey salaries for employees of some of those corporations.

Other members of the crime ring then used 44 counterfeited debit cards to withdraw cash from 2,100 ATM machines, located in Japan, Hong Kong, Ukraine, Canada, and the U.S. This part of the operation was so well coordinated, it took twelve hours to steal $9 million US dollars from 280 cities. Prosecutors from the U.S. Justice Department claim these “cashers” were permitted to keep 30–50% of their haul, conveying the remainder to the ring’s organizers.

Although the nationality of one of those indicted has not been clarified, one is Moldavan, one Russian, and five Estonian. The alleged leader of the operation, another Estonian, remains imprisoned within his home country as the Justice Department seeks his extradition.

Following the grand jury indictment, the eight suspects must now stand trial. The suspects, who range in age from 20 to 33, all face gaol time, four of them as much as 30 years.

Source: brisbanetimes.com.au