Office of Public Affairs Justice Department Seizes Cybercrime Website and Charges Its Administrators United States Department of Justice
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ppArchived NewsppPara Notícias en EspañolppThe Justice Department today announced the seizure of PopeyeTools an illicit website and marketplace dedicated to selling stolen credit cards and other tools for carrying out cybercrime and fraud and unsealed criminal charges against three PopeyeTools administrators Abdul Ghaffar 25 of Pakistan Abdul Sami 35 of Pakistan and Javed Mirza 37 of AfghanistanppAccording to a criminal complaint unsealed today Ghaffar Sami and Mirza are charged with conspiracy to commit access device fraud trafficking access devices and solicitation of another person for the purposes of offering access devices arising from their roles as administrators of the PopeyeTools websiteppAs part of the actions announced today the United States obtained judicial authorization to seize the domains wwwPopeyeToolscom wwwPopeyeToolscouk and wwwPopeyeToolsto which long hosted and facilitated access to the PopeyeTools website According to the affidavit filed in support of these seizures since in or around 2016 PopeyeTools served as a significant online marketplace dedicated to selling sensitive financial data and other illicit goods and tools of cybercrime to thousands of users around the world including users associated with ransomware activity Some of the stolen information included bank account credit card and debit card numbers and associated information for conducting transactions Since its inception PopeyeTools has offered for sale the access devices and personally identifiable information PII of at least 227000 individuals and generated at least 17 million in revenueppAs alleged Ghaffar Sami and Mirza founded and ran a longstanding online marketplace that sold illicit goods and services for use in committing cybercrimes including ransomware attacks and financial frauds said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M Argentieri head of the Justice Departments Criminal Division Todays announcement of the takedown of the PopeyeTools domains the criminal charges against its operators and the seizure of cryptocurrency is yet another example of the departments alltools approach to combatting cybercrime Working with our domestic and international partners the Criminal Division is committed to disrupting illicit enterprises through every available means including by taking over their websites charging culpable individuals and seizing their illicit proceedsppCybercrime knows no boundaries said US Attorney Trini E Ross for the Western District of New York I continue to commend the work of our federal law enforcement partners who joined forces with law enforcement across the globe to disrupt this illicit marketplace The perpetrators of this illegal marketplace allegedly sold the credit card information and personally identifiable information of hundreds of thousands of victims some who live in western New York Because of the incredible work of law enforcement this illegal website has been seized and taken down so no one else can be victimizedppDismantling the infrastructure of cyber criminals and seizing their funds are key aspects of the FBIs cyber strategy said Assistant Director Bryan Vorndran of FBIs Cyber Division Todays announcement marks success on both fronts In addition to unsealing charges against the administrators of PopeyeTools weve also seized domains and cryptocurrency associated with the cybercriminal marketplace The FBI will continue to relentlessly pursue the facilitators of cyber crime along with their tools and resourcesppTodays seizure of PopeyeTools an illegal website and marketplace highlights the FBIs dedication to weaken cybercrime said Special Agent in Charge Matthew Miraglia of the FBI Buffalo Field Office This takedown is a significant example of the FBIs technical capabilities as well as our strong relationships with our international partners to protect people from cybercriminals operating these types of online marketplacesppAccording to court documents the PopeyeTools marketplaces motto was We Believe in Quality Not Quantity and the website made a name for itself by allegedly selling stolen access devices and other illicit goods and services that were valid and thereby suited to committing financial fraud For instance the Live Fullz section offered unauthorized payment card data and PII for cards that were marketed as live ie could be used to conduct fraudulent transactions at a price of approximately 30 per card Other sections included Fresh Bank Logs which offered logs of stolen bank account information Fresh Leads or email spam lists Scam pages and Guides and TutorialsppTo attract members to the marketplace PopeyeTools allegedly promised to refund or replace purchased credit cards that were no longer valid at the time of sale In addition at different times PopeyeTools provided customers with access to services that could be used to check the validity of bank account credit card or debit card numbers offered through the websiteppAs part of the actions announced today the United States also obtained judicial authorization to seize approximately 283000 worth of cryptocurrencies from a cryptocurrency account controlled by SamippIf convicted Ghaffar Sami and Mirza face a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison on each of the three access device offenses A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the US Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factorsppThe FBI Buffalo Field Office investigated the caseppThe Justice Departments Office of International Affairs provided assistance The Justice Department appreciates the significant assistance provided by law enforcement partners in the United Kingdom and MalaysiappSenior Counsel Aarash A Haghighat of the Criminal Divisions Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and Assistant US Attorney Paul Bonanno for the Western District of New York are prosecuting the case Assistant US Attorney Elizabeth Palma for the Western District of New York also assisted with the announced seizuresppA criminal complaint is merely an allegation All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of lawppAn indictment was unsealed yesterday in Nashville Tennessee charging nine members of a multistate money laundering organization responsible for laundering millions of dollars derived from internet fraud including business emailppAn indictment was unsealed yesterday in the Northern District of Texas charging two cofounders of Blueacorn a lender service provider in connection with a scheme to fraudulently obtain COVID19 reliefppA Nevada man pleaded guilty yesterday to one count of wire fraud stemming from his role in a yearslong fraud scheme during which he stole more than 61 million inppOffice of Public Affairs
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Washington DC 20530ppOffice of Public Affairs Direct Line
2025142007ppDepartment of Justice Main Switchboard
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or https means youve safely connected to the gov website Share sensitive information only on official secure websites
ppArchived NewsppPara Notícias en EspañolppThe Justice Department today announced the seizure of PopeyeTools an illicit website and marketplace dedicated to selling stolen credit cards and other tools for carrying out cybercrime and fraud and unsealed criminal charges against three PopeyeTools administrators Abdul Ghaffar 25 of Pakistan Abdul Sami 35 of Pakistan and Javed Mirza 37 of AfghanistanppAccording to a criminal complaint unsealed today Ghaffar Sami and Mirza are charged with conspiracy to commit access device fraud trafficking access devices and solicitation of another person for the purposes of offering access devices arising from their roles as administrators of the PopeyeTools websiteppAs part of the actions announced today the United States obtained judicial authorization to seize the domains wwwPopeyeToolscom wwwPopeyeToolscouk and wwwPopeyeToolsto which long hosted and facilitated access to the PopeyeTools website According to the affidavit filed in support of these seizures since in or around 2016 PopeyeTools served as a significant online marketplace dedicated to selling sensitive financial data and other illicit goods and tools of cybercrime to thousands of users around the world including users associated with ransomware activity Some of the stolen information included bank account credit card and debit card numbers and associated information for conducting transactions Since its inception PopeyeTools has offered for sale the access devices and personally identifiable information PII of at least 227000 individuals and generated at least 17 million in revenueppAs alleged Ghaffar Sami and Mirza founded and ran a longstanding online marketplace that sold illicit goods and services for use in committing cybercrimes including ransomware attacks and financial frauds said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M Argentieri head of the Justice Departments Criminal Division Todays announcement of the takedown of the PopeyeTools domains the criminal charges against its operators and the seizure of cryptocurrency is yet another example of the departments alltools approach to combatting cybercrime Working with our domestic and international partners the Criminal Division is committed to disrupting illicit enterprises through every available means including by taking over their websites charging culpable individuals and seizing their illicit proceedsppCybercrime knows no boundaries said US Attorney Trini E Ross for the Western District of New York I continue to commend the work of our federal law enforcement partners who joined forces with law enforcement across the globe to disrupt this illicit marketplace The perpetrators of this illegal marketplace allegedly sold the credit card information and personally identifiable information of hundreds of thousands of victims some who live in western New York Because of the incredible work of law enforcement this illegal website has been seized and taken down so no one else can be victimizedppDismantling the infrastructure of cyber criminals and seizing their funds are key aspects of the FBIs cyber strategy said Assistant Director Bryan Vorndran of FBIs Cyber Division Todays announcement marks success on both fronts In addition to unsealing charges against the administrators of PopeyeTools weve also seized domains and cryptocurrency associated with the cybercriminal marketplace The FBI will continue to relentlessly pursue the facilitators of cyber crime along with their tools and resourcesppTodays seizure of PopeyeTools an illegal website and marketplace highlights the FBIs dedication to weaken cybercrime said Special Agent in Charge Matthew Miraglia of the FBI Buffalo Field Office This takedown is a significant example of the FBIs technical capabilities as well as our strong relationships with our international partners to protect people from cybercriminals operating these types of online marketplacesppAccording to court documents the PopeyeTools marketplaces motto was We Believe in Quality Not Quantity and the website made a name for itself by allegedly selling stolen access devices and other illicit goods and services that were valid and thereby suited to committing financial fraud For instance the Live Fullz section offered unauthorized payment card data and PII for cards that were marketed as live ie could be used to conduct fraudulent transactions at a price of approximately 30 per card Other sections included Fresh Bank Logs which offered logs of stolen bank account information Fresh Leads or email spam lists Scam pages and Guides and TutorialsppTo attract members to the marketplace PopeyeTools allegedly promised to refund or replace purchased credit cards that were no longer valid at the time of sale In addition at different times PopeyeTools provided customers with access to services that could be used to check the validity of bank account credit card or debit card numbers offered through the websiteppAs part of the actions announced today the United States also obtained judicial authorization to seize approximately 283000 worth of cryptocurrencies from a cryptocurrency account controlled by SamippIf convicted Ghaffar Sami and Mirza face a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison on each of the three access device offenses A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the US Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factorsppThe FBI Buffalo Field Office investigated the caseppThe Justice Departments Office of International Affairs provided assistance The Justice Department appreciates the significant assistance provided by law enforcement partners in the United Kingdom and MalaysiappSenior Counsel Aarash A Haghighat of the Criminal Divisions Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and Assistant US Attorney Paul Bonanno for the Western District of New York are prosecuting the case Assistant US Attorney Elizabeth Palma for the Western District of New York also assisted with the announced seizuresppA criminal complaint is merely an allegation All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of lawppAn indictment was unsealed yesterday in Nashville Tennessee charging nine members of a multistate money laundering organization responsible for laundering millions of dollars derived from internet fraud including business emailppAn indictment was unsealed yesterday in the Northern District of Texas charging two cofounders of Blueacorn a lender service provider in connection with a scheme to fraudulently obtain COVID19 reliefppA Nevada man pleaded guilty yesterday to one count of wire fraud stemming from his role in a yearslong fraud scheme during which he stole more than 61 million inppOffice of Public Affairs
US Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington DC 20530ppOffice of Public Affairs Direct Line
2025142007ppDepartment of Justice Main Switchboard
2025142000ppSignup for Email Updates
Social MediappppHave a question about Government Servicesp