Finland police dismantle massive MobilePay phishing scheme that hit 90,000 users

Finnish police say they have uncovered a large‑scale financial fraud that used phishing messages pretending to be from mobile‑payment service MobilePay. Over the summer more than 90,000 Finns received fraudulent SMS containing links to phishing sites, where the perpetrators harvested banking credentials and accessed victims’ payment cards.

Investigators say a man under 30 from Turku coordinated the operation and is charged with 26 serious offences, including 21 counts of payment‑card fraud, three frauds and two attempts. Six other men from the Southwest Finland region are also suspected of money‑laundering. The scheme stole more than €177 000 from 17 victims; authorities have recovered about €55 000 through seizures. The case will soon be forwarded to prosecutors. Police chief Valtteri Kemppi warned the public not to authenticate or provide payment details via the links.