Criminals in Brazil are stealing people’s iPhones to access bank accounts, not resell the devices
In São Paulo, the largest city in Brazil, criminals are stealing people’s iPhones, and after a few hours, they manage to access users’ bank accounts and then steal from their accounts.
As reported by the Brazilian newspaper Folha de S.Paulo, this kind of theft has been happening since the beginning of the pandemic and has only gotten worse. In the story, people with an iPhone 11 and iPhone XR had not only their iPhone unlocked, but also their bank account hacked.
Before the pandemic, it was common to see bicycle thieves stealing phones from inattentive people on the street, but they used to resell the phones. Now, there’s a specialized gang that not only invades the iPhone but also the bank account as well.
Procon-SP, the Brazilian consumer protection regulator based in São Paulo state, is planning to take action against companies such as Apple, other smartphone makers, and banks.
“Procon already acknowledged about a gang of cell phone receivers whose main illegal business is not the resale of cell phones, but the defrauding of passwords for bank fraud. This is being done through an army of hackers,” said executive director Fernando Capez.
