The Spanish Civil Guard has dismantled a network of fraudsters who managed to raise up to 8 million euros through a fraudulent website that simulated carrying out official procedures. The agents estimate that there are a total of 150,000 people affected by this macro scam throughout Spain who charged for free procedures. The criminals created a network of front companies to launder money. It is important to exercise extreme caution in online transactions and always make sure to use official websites. Internet scams are a growing crime that requires international cooperation to be effectively combated.
The detainees, three people from Madrid, Valdemoro (Madrid) and Valladolid, took advantage of the rise of online transactions during the pandemic to create a portal that emulated official administration pages. They offered the processing of procedures such as registration certificates, criminal records, work life or European health card, charging between 19 and 89 euros for each one, when in reality they are completely free.
The first scam
The investigation began in Baeza (Jaén) after the complaint of a citizen who was scammed when requesting a registration certificate. The agents have intervened and blocked one million euros in the organization’s accounts, 111 properties and 13 vehicles acquired with the money from the fraud. In addition, they have detected the evasion of 1.5 million euros to accounts in the United States.
A network of 35 front companies for money laundering
The fraudsters used a complex network of 35 companies and shell companies to launder the profits obtained. They made a multitude of transfers between more than 400 accounts in 18 different national and international banking entities, to give the appearance of legal activity and make it difficult to trace the money.
According to Civil Guard sources, this type of online scams has increased significantly in recent years. “Criminals take advantage of the lack of knowledge of many citizens about administrative procedures and the convenience of doing them online,” they point out. They advise extreme caution and always make sure that these are official websites before providing personal data or making payments.
Tips to avoid being a victim of online scams
Some recommendations to avoid falling into this type of fraud are:
Always check the URL and make sure that it is an official website (ending in .gob.es, .es or similar) Be wary of websites that request payment for free procedures Do not provide personal or banking information on suspicious pages If you have any questions, consult directly with the competent administration.
Internet scams are an increasingly frequent crime in Spain. According to data from the Ministry of the Interior, more than 350,000 cybercrimes were recorded in 2021, 20% more than the previous year. Of these, fraud is the most common, representing 85% of the total.
Security forces warn of the growing sophistication of these criminal organizations, which use increasingly elaborate techniques to deceive their victims. International cooperation and specialized training of agents are key to combating this type of crime.
