According to the indictment, the individuals used fake websites to trick elderly people into clicking on links that locked their screens. The victims were then urged to call a technical support number. Through the fake support, they allegedly persuaded the victims to pay for fictitious services and to provide personal information.
"I believe that both the fraud and the data breach should be considered serious because they were directed at a particularly vulnerable target group," says senior prosecutor Johanna Kolga in a press release.
Two of the accused have been arrested in Spain by Spanish police. The rest were arrested in Sweden. The investigation has been complicated by the fact that many of the victims have been difficult to contact.
