US Treasury sanctions Filipina company for facilitating scams “Pig Butchering” type scams

A Filipina firm was indicated for providing technological infrastructure to thousands of fraudulent sites. Losses exceed USD $ 200 million.

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• He Treasure identified the company Funnull Technology as a large -scale facilitator of Crypto.
• It is estimated that each American victim lost an average of USD $ 150,000.
• The company facilitated large -scale IP addresses, managing customer listings.
• The measure prevents companies and people in the US to maintain commercial relations with Funnull Technology.

The US Treasury Department sanctioned FUNNULL TECHNOLOGY INC., A technological company based in the Philippines, for having provided digital infrastructure to “Hundreds of thousands of websites” involved in type scams “PIG BUTCHERING/Matanza de pigs”. This form of fraud, booming within the crypto ecosystem, It has generated losses for more than USD $ 200 million only in American victims.

The sanction was announced Thursday by the Foreign Assets Control Office (OFAC)a key entity in the tracking of illicit funds. According to the official statement, reviewed by COINDESK, The average individual losses among the victims exceeded USD $ 150,000.

Michael Faulkender, Undersecretary of the Treasure, He emphasized that this action seeks to stop the structures that support these criminal networks. “We are committed to guaranteeing the growth of an ecosystem of legitimate, safe and reliable digital assets”he declared.

What is the “Pig Butchering” And how does it operate?

The type scams PIG BUTCHERING “Thermal that alludes to the metaphor of gaining a pig before killing and consuming it,” consist of a prolonged psychological manipulation process. In them, the scammer establishes contact with the victim, many times through unplayed text messages or even with romantic dyes, and then persuade it to invest large sums in false opportunities related to cryptocurrency.

These networks are mainly controlled by criminal organizations from Southeast Asia, who use victims of labor trafficking in deplorable conditions to execute fraud.

In 2023, the OFAC He also sanctioned the Cambodian businessman Ly Yong Phat for his link with these operations, including the exploitation of torture people and practices in fraud centers.

The role of Funnull Technology In the criminal network

Funnull Technology It was identified by the OFAC as a key supplier of IP addresses acquired in large volumes to cloud services around the world. These were used to house fraudulent investment pages, illegal betting sites and phishing platforms.

According to the statement, the sites were designed to visually imitate legitimate pages, generating confidence in the victims and facilitating the appropriation of their funds. The company offered these services directly to criminal networks, positioning itself as an essential technical node in the fraud ecosystem.

Along with Funnull Technology, Liu Lizhi, a Chinese citizen who worked as a company administrator, was sanctioned. The OFAC He revealed that he owned spread and internal documentation leaves on the performance of specific employees and tasks, including the assignment of domains to cybercriminals.

The documents reviewed by the Treasury Department They indicated a detailed operational management in which fraud sites with illegal cryptocurrencies and bets were facilitated. The tasks were systematically executed, which shows a large -scale operation with business structure.

In including a Funnull Technology Already Liu on the list of Specially designated nationals (SDN), the OFAC It prohibits all American persons and entities – including residents and citizens outside the country – maintain any type of commercial relationship with them.

USA intensifies your consumer protection strategy

The sanction is part of a broader strategy of the US government to interrupt the logistics chains of digital crime. Since 2022, the OFAC He has been focusing efforts on dismantling networks that exploit digital tools to generate mass fraud, especially those that affect the crypto ecosystem.

He Treasure He emphasized that he will continue to use sanctions as a tool to protect US consumers and guarantee a safer digital environment.

Written article with the help of an AI content editor, edited by Angel Di Matteo / Diariobitcoin

Original image of UNSPLASH.

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