An investigation conducted at the Podkarpackie Regional Branch of the Department for Organised Crime and Corruption of the National Prosecutor's Office in Rzeszów has revealed that Niko M. and Liubov D., a Georgian national and a Ukrainian citizen, were members of a criminal group which managed to cheat at least 600 people out of more than PLN 40 million. They now face up to 20 years in prison. The case has, as police officers used to say, a developmental character, which means that further suspects can be expected.

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The defendants' procedure involved organizing fake investments in cryptocurrencies via online platforms. Its element was a professionally organized call center for communication with victims.

The consultants urged their victims to install special software on their computers - a so-called remote desktop, which was supposed to facilitate profitable cryptocurrency investments. However, it allowed the scammed people's hardware to be taken over. This allowed them to access their bank accounts and make transfers from them. The money eventually went to the fraudsters' accounts via exchange offices and cryptocurrency exchanges.

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According to prosecution representatives quoted in a news release by the Polish Press Agency (PAP), the defendants used methods of IP address anonymization, spoofing, i.e., impersonating a call originator who had no connection to the case, SimBoxes, i.e., devices using telecommunications infrastructure to anonymize telephone calls, etc.

Fraud using a so-called remote desktop and the motive of investing in cryptocurrencies is currently one of the internet's most popular and common methods of financial fraud.