The Yahoo Boys syndicate has become the nightmare of IT giants.
The Yahoo Boys fraud syndicate continues to actively use social networks to coordinate its actions, despite the platforms ' efforts to combat criminal activity. According to an analysis by WIRED, thousands of West African scammers are active on Facebook*, WhatsApp, Telegram, TikTok and YouTube, bringing in hundreds of millions of dollars annually.
Specialized groups discuss various fraud schemes, including extortion, sextorshen (blackmail through intimate photos and videos) and the use of fake accounts. Special attention is being paid to the sale of blackmail scripts and photos, which causes serious concern among cybersecurity experts.
Yahoo Boys do not hide their activities. Many groups use "Yahoo Boys" in their name, as well as other related terms. WIRED's analysis revealed 16 Yahoo Boys Facebook groups with nearly 200,000 members, 12 WhatsApp channels, about 10 Telegram channels, 20 TikTok accounts, 12 YouTube profiles, and more than 80 Scribd scripts. And that's just the tip of the iceberg.
The non-profit organization Advocating Against Romance Scammers emphasizes that scammers use real names and openly operate on platforms, which actually provides them with "free office space" for their activities.
Over the years, Yahoo Boys has engaged in various types of scams, including romance scam and BEC. However, recently criminals have started actively using deepfakes to create pornographic images and fake video calls, which further increases the threat.
The Yahoo Boys Syndicate is an organization of thousands of scammers who work individually or in groups. The origin of organized crime groups is often attributed to Nigeria. The name "Yahoo Boys" comes from the fact that scammers used to target users of Yahoo services. It is worth noting that Yahoo Boys is not a single organized group: groups in West Africa often gather in various fraternities.
Experts call on social media and law enforcement agencies to take Yahoo Boys ' activities more seriously, considering them as a dangerous, transnational organized criminal group. Especially troubling is their role in the spread of sextorshen, which leads to deplorable tragedies among adolescents.
Despite companies efforts to remove such accounts and groups, new Yahoo Boys communities continue to emerge, highlighting the need to strengthen measures to control and prevent such activities on social media platforms.
The Yahoo Boys fraud syndicate continues to actively use social networks to coordinate its actions, despite the platforms ' efforts to combat criminal activity. According to an analysis by WIRED, thousands of West African scammers are active on Facebook*, WhatsApp, Telegram, TikTok and YouTube, bringing in hundreds of millions of dollars annually.
Specialized groups discuss various fraud schemes, including extortion, sextorshen (blackmail through intimate photos and videos) and the use of fake accounts. Special attention is being paid to the sale of blackmail scripts and photos, which causes serious concern among cybersecurity experts.
Yahoo Boys do not hide their activities. Many groups use "Yahoo Boys" in their name, as well as other related terms. WIRED's analysis revealed 16 Yahoo Boys Facebook groups with nearly 200,000 members, 12 WhatsApp channels, about 10 Telegram channels, 20 TikTok accounts, 12 YouTube profiles, and more than 80 Scribd scripts. And that's just the tip of the iceberg.
The non-profit organization Advocating Against Romance Scammers emphasizes that scammers use real names and openly operate on platforms, which actually provides them with "free office space" for their activities.
Over the years, Yahoo Boys has engaged in various types of scams, including romance scam and BEC. However, recently criminals have started actively using deepfakes to create pornographic images and fake video calls, which further increases the threat.
The Yahoo Boys Syndicate is an organization of thousands of scammers who work individually or in groups. The origin of organized crime groups is often attributed to Nigeria. The name "Yahoo Boys" comes from the fact that scammers used to target users of Yahoo services. It is worth noting that Yahoo Boys is not a single organized group: groups in West Africa often gather in various fraternities.
Experts call on social media and law enforcement agencies to take Yahoo Boys ' activities more seriously, considering them as a dangerous, transnational organized criminal group. Especially troubling is their role in the spread of sextorshen, which leads to deplorable tragedies among adolescents.
Despite companies efforts to remove such accounts and groups, new Yahoo Boys communities continue to emerge, highlighting the need to strengthen measures to control and prevent such activities on social media platforms.
