Russian law enforcement agencies are ramping up efforts to shut down networks that harvest personal data to make accounts on illegal online casino sites.
Their efforts have seen them close the net on lone wolf operators who use their mobile phones to trade stolen data and siphon money out of unsuspecting citizens’ bank accounts.
Investigators in the city of Tomsk said they have identified one of these lone wolf traders, who has confessed to her alleged crimes, the Russian, Tomsk-based media outlet Vtomske reported.
The unnamed woman used her phone to access “restricted internet resources” (darkweb portals), the Federal Security Service (FSB) said. The woman confessed to paying unnamed individuals to hand over a tranche of 19 Russians’ personal data.
FSB officials think the data was exposed during a hacking incident.
Hackers Harvest Personal Data to Sell Online, Say Police
The woman reportedly used the data to create 19 separate online casino accounts between December 2024 and January 2025.
She then attempted to use these accounts to withdraw money from the gambling sites. Officers said she also collected more personal data on citizens on her phone before “passing this onto an unknown person.”
The FSB said it had charged the woman with the “illegal collection, storage, and transfer of illegally obtained digital files containing personal data.” Prosecutors have indicted the woman, who is now awaiting trial.
The crackdown has gathered pace in the wake of a massive data breach in nearby Belarus earlier this year. In February, hackers gained access to the Russian-language online casino website operated by Maxbet, the Belarusian media outlet Nasha Niva reported.
The criminals made off with data on around 10,000 customers. The firm confirmed the hackers had accessed the names, phone numbers, home addresses, dates of birth, and email addresses of its client base. The operator suspended operations after the leak was confirmed.
Black-market demand for personal data continues to rise, say police in both countries. The number of individuals who sell leaked data continues to increase, officials claim, with illegal online casino operators among their major customers.
Ministry of Finance’s Plan
Online casinos remain illegal under Russian law, although the Ministry of Finance wants to reverse this ban. The ministry says its controversial plan will bring the country millions of dollars per year in taxes.
Moscow finance chiefs’ plans involve taxing online casino operators 30% of their annual profits, minus winnings payouts. But prominent critics have hit out at the plan, with Orthodox Church leaders and leading politicians stepping into the fray.
Psychologists also say Russians living in poorer parts of the country would be at risk if lawmakers sign off on the ministry’s proposal.
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Russian law enforcement agencies are ramping up efforts to shut down networks that harvest personal data to make accounts on illegal online casino sites. Their efforts have seen them close the net on lone wolf operators who use their mobile phones to trade stolen data and siphon money out of unsuspecting citizens’ bank accounts. Investigators
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