The PBX Crime from Pakistan: Real Story
Farhan Ul Arshad and Noor Aziz Uddin Scamming
It’s early morning in February, and Amir Mizar Jabbar, Pakistan’s chief intelligence officer, is on his way to a hacker’s residence in a quiet Karachi neighborhood. For over two years, he’s been tracking this individual. Accompanying Jabbar are Pakistani police officers. They approach the front door and knock.
You’ve likely heard of the FBI’s top 10 most wanted criminals list. But did you know about their cybers most wanted list? It includes the FBI’s most sought-after hackers. Jabbar’s team is about to raid the home of one of these wanted hackers. As the door opens, Jabbar’s team forcefully enters, launching the raid.
The entire operation takes place over a single weekend, while the office is empty. One victim of such attacks, Adam Finch, recounts his experience. They only discovered the breach a month later when they received a staggering $24,000 phone bill, far higher than usual.
The bill revealed multiple calls to pay-per-minute numbers, including sex hotlines and psychic chatlines. Despite their protests to the telephone company, they were told to pay up. Adam’s company, embarrassed, ultimately footed the bill.
You might wonder why hackers would incur massive phone bills for others. The crux of the hack is turning phones into ATMs. Hackers utilize two main methods: exploiting voicemail and manipulating private branch exchange (PBX) systems.
One method involves accessing voicemail remotely and setting up call forwarding to pay-per-minute lines. Another method targets insecure PBX systems, allowing hackers to make calls that originate from the victim’s office.
These hacks can result in substantial financial losses for victims, with the communication Fraud Control Association estimating annual losses exceeding $10 billion. Unfortunately, victims often struggle to seek recourse from authorities or telecom providers.
In 2012, the FBI made strides in combating such crimes, identifying and apprehending two hackers involved in PBX hacking. However, the complex legalities surrounding extradition led to their release.
Despite the challenges, efforts to combat PBX hacking continue. However, until security measures improve, the threat persists.
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