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agencies. The data stolen from these sources
can be sold to other criminal groups specialised
in highly personalised scams. Information that
will be useful for this purpose includes personal
interests, social network structure and financial
details. Additionally, increased interconnectivity
will give criminals the opportunity to develop
ransomware for essential products such as
vehicles, refrigeration units or heaters.
Data may also be vulnerable to theft using contactless
bank or credit cards. Radio-frequency
identification (RFID) technology, allowing for
purchases to be made by holding cards up to
an RFID reader, is already used in Europe and
will become common in shops and cafés due
to the ease and speed of payment. This creates
opportunities for a new type of skimming using
RFID readers to copy card data. The card does
not need to be used and can even be ‘skimmed’
through a wallet or clothes. OCGs may travel
to busy locations such as public transportation
hubs or popular stores and use concealed readers
to gather the card information of oblivious
passers-by. This information will then be used
or sold on to other criminal groups. It is expected
that the financial industry will take measures
to prevent this form of skimming, although the
extent of these measures may vary. Should contactless
payment grow in popularity, measures
such as skim-proof card covers or wallets are
expected to be used.
Although current technology does not allow for
mobile wallets to be effectively skimmed, near
field communication technology that enables
financial data to be stolen from mobile phones
may be developed by criminals. It will then be
used in the same way as contactless skimming.
Identity fraud will become more sophisticated
as a result of developments in the collection
of personal and biometric information. As the
use of biometric data becomes widespread, it
is likely that databases holding this information
will be targeted by cybercriminals. The
proliferation of biometric data as a means of
authentication has the potential to make online
services more secure. However, compromised
biometric data may also pose additional risks.
Traditional authentication mechanisms such
as passwords or phrases can be updated by
users if they suspect their accounts have been
compromised. Biometric data are inherently
constant and their exposure to cybercriminals
may have more far reaching consequences
than compromised passwords. Biometric data
is often considered inherently reliable for
authentication. Once compromised, biometric
data could provide criminals access to physical
structures as well as sensitive information.
Skilled cybercrime groups already provide full
stolen identities to interested buyers, usually
for use in the commission of various frauds.
In the future, this data package will consist of
even more comprehensive information including
the biographical data, personal details, photos,
credit card information and biometric data
of an individual. It is expected that the trade in
illicitly obtained information will increase as the
utility of the data for criminals becomes higher.
OCGs will benefit from these more comprehensive
stolen identities in various crime areas.
OCGs involved in the facilitation of illegal immigration
and the trafficking of human beings can
use this data to provide irregular migrants and
trafficking victims with new identities complete
with all the information necessary to avoid risk
profiling or law enforcement countermeasures
upon entry to the EU or during secondary
movements. Similarly, OCGs involved in the
trafficking of drugs using couriers will be able
to buy and use identities that are unlikely to fall
within risk categories. Some OCGs will provide
specialised identity packages to order, tailored
to specific modi operandi employed by OCGs
in various crime areas. For instance, OCGs involved
in the trafficking of endangered species
may order identities linked to research institutions
in order to ship specimens of endangered
species using special permits only issued for
scientific research purposes.
EUROPOL / Exploring tomorrow’s organised crime / 2015
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