Funnull scam network tied to $200M in US losses

The Register reports that a financial fraud investigation by cybersecurity firm Silent Push has uncovered a vast criminal infrastructure operated by Funnull, a Philippines-based company linked to over 1.4 million scam-hosting sites.

Initially sparked by attempts to prevent phishing of a US trading app, the probe revealed an expansive network used to facilitate global financial scams, particularly in cryptocurrency. Silent Push CEO Ken Bagnall described Funnull as central to the majority of virtual currency scams reported to the FBI, with losses surpassing $200 million in the US alone. The US Treasury sanctioned Funnull and its Chinese administrator Liu Lizhi, while the FBI connected the group to more than 332,000 domains. Silent Push works with global law enforcement and the World Economic Forum's Cyber Crime Atlas to expose and disrupt these operations. However, Bagnall warns of a cat-and-mouse dynamic as criminals adapt quickly. He likens cybercrimes geopolitical backing to historical privateering, urging governments to treat it as a national economic threat.