Italian police recover €400,000 from account‑takeover fraud

Police from the Rome Cybersecurity Center stopped an account‑takeover scheme that used the public‑payment platform pagoPA to empty the bank accounts of a Roman entrepreneur and his accountant. By hijacking the victims’ banking credentials, the attackers directed payments to fake service contracts and tax bills in the names of third parties, siphoning more than €400,000. The police intervened on 26 June, blocked the transactions in real time and recovered the full amount. Investigators are tracing the illicit cash flow, identifying the beneficiaries of the fraudulent invoices and seeking the perpetrators, whose methods included phishing, credential‑stealing malware and social‑engineering calls. The case underscores the importance of rapid reporting and coordinated cyber‑crime response.

The investigation remains ongoing, with the Rome prosecutor’s office overseeing the probe.