More than 565 people in North America and Europe have been arrested in an international sweep that targeted marketing fraud using the Internet and other means, the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) announced Tuesday.The international operation, called Operation Global Con, targeted lottery and sweepstakes schemes, offers of nonexistent investments, bogus offers of preapproved credit cards and fee scams similar to the popular Nigerian banking schemes, the DoJ said. Fraudsters used various means, including the Internet, telemarketing and mass mail, to target victims, the DoJ said.The ongoing operation started March 1. The 96 separate U.S. investigations in the operation found 2.8 million victims who suffered losses totalling more than US $1 billion, the DoJ said.The fraudsters believe they can “use modern technology to operate from anywhere in the world with impunity,” said U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales in a statement. So far, the operation has led to the arrest of 139 people in the United States, and an additional 426 arrests in Canada, Costa Rica, the Netherlands and Spain. Authorities executed 447 search warrants in the five countries as part of the operation, and 61 people have been convicted in the United States so far, the DoJ said. In addition, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission has brought 20 civil actions against 140 defendants in illegal fraud schemes.Last week, Costa Rican agents, working with U.S. officials, conducted a series of arrests and searches that targeted so-called boiler-room operations. These operations used Internet-based telephony and mobile phones to contact prospective victims in the United States, purporting to be from nonexistent organizations such as the Sweepstakes Security Commission, to offer nonexistent sweepstakes winnings of as much as $4.5 million, the DoJ said. Victims were expected, in return, to pay insurance fees. Some victims who made the payments would then be recontacted by participants in the schemes, who pretended to be Costa Rican or U.S. customs authorities demanding payment of additional customs fees or taxes. U.S. victims of Internet fraud schemes should file complaints online with the Internet Crime Complaint Center, a joint project of the FBI and the National White Collar Crime Center, at IC3.gov. Victims of telemarketing fraud should contact the Federal Trade Commission’s Consumer Sentinel at FTC.gov.-Grant Gross, IDG News ServiceCheck out our CIO News Alerts and Tech Informer pages for more updated news coverage. Related content brandpost Sponsored by SAP When natural disasters strike Japan, Ōita University’s EDiSON is ready to act With the technology and assistance of SAP and Zynas Corporation, Ōita University built an emergency-response collaboration tool named EDiSON that helps the Japanese island of Kyushu detect and mitigate natural disasters. By Michael Kure, SAP Contributor Dec 07, 2023 5 mins Digital Transformation brandpost Sponsored by BMC BMC on BMC: How the company enables IT observability with BMC Helix and AIOps The goals: transform an ocean of data and ultimately provide a stellar user experience and maximum value. By Jeff Miller Dec 07, 2023 3 mins IT Leadership brandpost Sponsored by BMC The data deluge: The need for IT Operations observability and strategies for achieving it BMC Helix brings thousands of data points together to create a holistic view of the health of a service. By Jeff Miller Dec 07, 2023 4 mins IT Leadership how-to How to create an effective business continuity plan A business continuity plan outlines procedures and instructions an organization must follow in the face of disaster, whether fire, flood, or cyberattack. Here’s how to create a plan that gives your business the best chance of surviving such an By Mary K. Pratt, Ed Tittel, Kim Lindros Dec 07, 2023 11 mins Small and Medium Business IT Skills Backup and Recovery Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe