There is poetic justice when the hacker gets hacked, an issue reported by KrebsOnSecurity. Brian Krebs reported the recent hacking of BriansClub, a trading site for crooks to offer hacked cards, with taunting references to Krebs’ long standing security and investigation reporting.
Using Brian Krebs’ first name, coupled with references such as “Crabs on Security” (sic), users were able to see black market prices on stolen credit and debit card numbers, ranging from a low of debit cards without a PIN set at $20 to high valued premium credit cards at $1,000.
Krebs points to the fact that stolen credit cards offered by BriansClub generated $126 million in sales—all paid for by bitcoin—through the sale of 9.1 million cards account numbers between 2015 and August 2019.
The firm also extends the numbers and says that those 9.1 million cards would have caused more than $4 million in losses based on the U.S. Department of Justice estimate of an average of $500 loss per card.
ITPRO, a business insight news source noted:
- BriansClub is modelled after the site of security researcher Brian Krebs, also using his likeness in various graphics across the store. It sells payment details stolen by other hackers, allowing them to earn a percentage of the sale.
- The identity or motivations of the hacker who reclaimed the stolen details are not yet known, but an expert speaking to KrebsOnSecurity, which first reported the event, said the hack on the biggest store of its kind will have short-term effects on how competitors price their products.
- With over 78% of the illicit trade of stolen cards attributed to only a dozen of dark web markets, a breach of this magnitude will undoubtedly disturb the underground trade in the short term,” said Andrei Barysevich, co-founder and CEO at Gemini. “However, since the demand for stolen credit cards is on the rise, other vendors will undoubtedly attempt to capitalise on the disappearance of the top player.”
In this case of “man bites dog,” it is good to see some stress on the dark web. The Inquirer reported:
- The hack, which took place in August, saw attackers turning over data to the banking industry so the cards could be cancelled.
…Score one for the good guys.
Overview by Brian Riley, Director, Credit Advisory Service at Mercator Advisory Group