NCCIA raids illegal call centre in Karachi: Five arrested for int'l bank account hacking

KARACHI: The National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) arrested five digital hackers during a raid on an illegal call centre operating in Karachi, ARY News reported on Friday.

According to Additional Director NCCIA Tariq Nawaz, five suspects involved in bank account hacking have been arrested during a flat raid in Karachi DHA Phase 6. During the action, hacking devices and mobile phones were recovered from their possession.

The operation was carried out in DHA Phase 6, Big Bokhari. Additional Director NCCIA confirmed that an organised hacking network was being run from the Phase 6 Big Bokhari location. He stated that the owner of the call centre is currently abroad.

The arrested suspects were involved in digital crimes targeting people abroad. They used to hack overseas bank accounts and transfer money into various other accounts.

During the search, authorities recovered 11 CPUs, a laptop, and 13 mobile phones. Several important documents were also seized.

A case has been registered against the suspects, the Additional Director NCCIA added.

PTA, NCCIA carry out joint raids against illegal issuance of SIMs

Last month, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) Zonal Office Lahore, in collaboration with the NCCIA Lahore, carried out successful raids against Telecom Franchisees involved in the illegal issuance of SIMs through biometric verification scanners.

These raids were conducted in Shahkot (District Nankana Sahib), Haveli Lakha (District Okara), and Yazman (District Bahawalpur).

During the raids, the joint PTA-NCCIA team seized a substantial quantity of suspicious SIMs and equipment used for unlawful activations.

All seized items were taken into custody by NCCIA as evidence.

One franchise CSR was arrested during the Shahkot and Haveli Lakha raid, while three individuals including the franchise owner and manager/supervisor were apprehended in Yazman.