CyberSecurity news
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Cynthia B@Metacurity
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The U.S. Treasury Department has sanctioned Funnull Technology Inc., a Philippines-based company, for providing infrastructure that facilitated "pig butchering" scams, a type of cryptocurrency investment fraud that has cost Americans over $200 million. The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) took action on May 29, 2025, targeting Funnull and its administrator, Liu Lizhi. The FBI has also issued an advisory warning against Funnull, highlighting its role as a major distributor of online scams. Funnull is accused of enabling cybercriminals by purchasing IP addresses in bulk from major cloud service providers and then selling them to operators of fraudulent investment platforms.
The sanctions follow an FBI investigation that linked Funnull to the majority of virtual currency investment scam websites reported to them. The agency stated that Funnull directly facilitated pig butchering and other schemes that resulted in more than $200 million in financial losses for U.S. victims, with average individual losses exceeding $150,000. These scams typically involve perpetrators posing as romantic partners or friends online to gain victims’ trust, then convincing them to invest in virtual currency on platforms that ultimately prove to be fraudulent. Scammers often demand additional "taxes" on purported crypto earnings before allowing victims to withdraw their funds, which never happens.
Security firm Silent Push had previously identified Funnull as a criminal content delivery network (CDN) routing traffic through U.S.-based cloud providers before redirecting users to malicious websites. Their October 2024 research exposed a sprawling cluster of domains, dubbed "Triad Nexus," routed through Funnull's CDNs, revealing how cybercriminals leverage credible cloud providers for malicious activities through what they termed "infrastructure laundering." The FBI observed patterns of IP address activity on Funnull infrastructure between October 2023 and April 2025, including the simultaneous migration of hundreds of domains to other IP addresses, further complicating efforts to track and combat the scams.
ImgSrc: www.metacurity.
References :
The sanctions follow an FBI investigation that linked Funnull to the majority of virtual currency investment scam websites reported to them. The agency stated that Funnull directly facilitated pig butchering and other schemes that resulted in more than $200 million in financial losses for U.S. victims, with average individual losses exceeding $150,000. These scams typically involve perpetrators posing as romantic partners or friends online to gain victims’ trust, then convincing them to invest in virtual currency on platforms that ultimately prove to be fraudulent. Scammers often demand additional "taxes" on purported crypto earnings before allowing victims to withdraw their funds, which never happens.
Security firm Silent Push had previously identified Funnull as a criminal content delivery network (CDN) routing traffic through U.S.-based cloud providers before redirecting users to malicious websites. Their October 2024 research exposed a sprawling cluster of domains, dubbed "Triad Nexus," routed through Funnull's CDNs, revealing how cybercriminals leverage credible cloud providers for malicious activities through what they termed "infrastructure laundering." The FBI observed patterns of IP address activity on Funnull infrastructure between October 2023 and April 2025, including the simultaneous migration of hundreds of domains to other IP addresses, further complicating efforts to track and combat the scams.
ImgSrc: www.metacurity.
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References :
- krebsonsecurity.com: U.S. Sanctions Cloud Provider ‘Funnull’ as Top Source of ‘Pig Butchering’ Scams
- Threats | CyberScoop: Treasury sanctions crypto scam facilitator that allegedly stole $200M from US victims
- Metacurity: US sanctions Filipino firm for pig butchering scams that cost Americans $200 million
- DataBreaches.Net: U.S. Sanctions Cloud Provider ‘Funnull’ as Top Source of ‘Pig Butchering’ Scams
- www.chainalysis.com: Chainalysis: OFAC Sanctions Funnull Technology Inc. for Supporting Pig Butchering Scams
- www.silentpush.com: U.S. Treasury Sanctions FUNNULL CDN, FBI Issues Advisory Warning Against Major Cyber Scam Facilitator
Classification:
- HashTags: #PigButchering #CyberScam
- Company: US Treasury
- Target: Americans
- Feature: CDN
- Type: Legal
- Severity: Major