⚡Paraguay Hit By Yet Another Cyber Attack https://www.occrp.org/en/news/paraguay-hit-by-yet-another-cyber-attack

Paraguay’s government has said it “contained” two breaches of sensitive data by a cybercrime group earlier this month. But the statement sparked criticism as some stolen information had already been released online.

A Maltese court sentenced Robert Agius to life in prison last week for supplying explosives used to kill investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia.

But despite being under court-ordered asset freezes since 2013, companies owned by Agius or his wife managed to move millions through property deals https://www.occrp.org/en/scoop/companies-linked-to-convicted-bomb-supplier-in-daphne-case-moved-millions-despite-asset-freeze

This might be a landmark in known cybersecurity incidents today, according to experts. The personal data of every citizen of Paraguay is threatened to be leaked by cybercriminals. Authorities told OCCRP they will not pay the $7.4 million ransom demanded by June 13 https://www.occrp.org/en/news/exclusive-paraguay-says-it-wont-pay-ransomware-group-for-stolen-citizenship-data

“If Telegram has not taken additional measures to protect data directly on the servers, then the FSB can relatively easily gain access to their contents.”

Messaging app Telegram has a reputation for security — but who controls its servers? https://www.occrp.org/en/investigation/telegram-the-fsb-and-the-man-in-the-middle

NEW: Messaging app Telegram has a reputation for security — but @istories_media found that its technical infrastructure is run by a man whose companies closely collaborate with Russian intelligence services.

Meet the little-known engineer at the center: https://www.occrp.org/en/investigation/telegram-the-fsb-and-the-man-in-the-middle

YOJO, a new non-profit digital newsroom designed by and for young journalists, is opening up applications for recent grads from around the world to join them in Athens for full-time, paid placements (1 or 2 years).

Apply here yojo.news/en/

Pensioners carrying thousands of euros across the border, embassy intermediaries, cryptocurrency transfers…

No, it’s not a spy thriller — it’s how a Russian state-backed foundation, Pravfond, funneled money into at least 11 EU countries after being sanctioned.

Recipients ranged from a taxi driver convicted of espionage to notorious arms dealer Viktor Bout.

Read our #DearCompatriots investigation: https://www.occrp.org/en/project/dear-compatriots/russian-state-fund-paid-allies-in-the-eu-despite-sanctions

For years, a state-backed Russian foundation, Pravfond, has been paying for the legal defense of alleged spies, criminals, and propagandists: from a taxi driver convicted of espionage to notorious arms dealer Viktor Bout. Despite being sanctioned by the EU last year, the money is still flowing.

Our new investigation #DearCompatriots with 30 media partners around the world https://www.occrp.org/en/project/dear-compatriots/russian-foundation-aimed-at-helping-compatriots-abroad-supports-spies-criminals-and-propagandists

🎶I get by with a little help from my friends🎶

In 2016, the mayor of Belgrade told a court that friends from abroad paid his children’s pricey school fees.

But @KRIKrs found they were paid by three offshore companies — including one he owned.

📍Read the full story: https://www.occrp.org/en/investigation/pricey-private-school-tuition-for-serbian-officials-children-was-paid-through-offshore-companies

NEW: Dozens of criminals belonging to some of the Balkans’ most violent gangs have been stealing the identities of Bosnian citizens to obtain fraudulent passports, helping them cross borders, plan murders, and disappear.

Read the investigation by CIN (Bosnia) https://www.occrp.org/en/investigation/using-stolen-identities-balkan-gangsters-armed-themselves-with-bosnian-passports

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Join us for an intensive one-day online training designed for mid-level journalists who want to advance their reporting

It is a deep dive into:

🕵️ Tracking assets across borders with latest tools and techniques
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Julius Maada Bio became Sierra Leone’s President in 2018, declaring the fight against corruption a top priority. Since then, his wife Fatima and her relatives have scooped up a string of luxury properties in Gambia.

A new OCCRP investigation 👇
https://www.occrp.org/en/investigation/after-sierra-leones-president-took-office-his-wife-and-her-family-went-real-estate-shopping

🏆 @bostonglobe project, with contributions from OCCRP, was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in Public Service for its coverage of financial mismanagement at Steward Health Care and its impact on patients and their families https://www.pulitzer.org/finalists/22660

TODAY: Join us for an exclusive event exploring the findings behind our latest investigation into sprawling financial scam networks #ScamEmpire. This session is designed for professionals working in compliance, due diligence, law enforcement, banking, and policy https://mailchi.mp/occrp/occrp-briefing-the-future-of-anti-corruption-efforts-2765977

Join us for an exclusive event exploring the findings behind our latest cross-border investigation into financial scam networks #ScamEmpire. In this live OCCRP Briefing, journalists who broke the story will explain why #KYC and #AML safeguards failed to stop it: https://mailchi.mp/occrp/occrp-briefing-the-future-of-anti-corruption-efforts-2765977

Learn more about the unprecedented leak from the heart of a merciless investment scam industry that stretches across the globe — and why it’s so hard for banks to protect their clients from it https://www.occrp.org/en/project/scam-empire/huge-ecosystem-of-unregulated-payment-providers-helps-scammers-collect-victims-money

She thought she was investing — but the account was actually controlled by a 74-year-old man from Nottingham. And her money all ended up in the hands of scammers.

“Just come and take my blood and sell it, because that is all I have left in my body now. You have taken everything off me,” she said to the scammers after she had lost all her savings.

He wasn’t alone — we also talked to a Spanish doctor who lost nearly 100K euros. He thought he was sending funds to a Swiss investment firm … but it really disappeared into this network of shell companies stretching from Spain to the U.K. to Bulgaria and Macedonia.

Mark sent his money to the bank account provided by Bankio — but it didn’t connect him to an investment company like he thought, but to a Revolut account held by a Bulgarian company. (Revolut declined to comment on the case.)

He never saw it again.

That was key — in many cases, scammers provided precise instructions to their victims of what to tell their banks so their transactions would go through, and sent fake invoices to help, for things like “construction materials” or “copper cathodes.”