By PresenterMedia.com

Chinese authorities bust billion-yuan bankcard fraud ring

Chinese authorities have rounded up more than 200 people suspected of participating in a massive bankcard phishing scheme that may have netted as much as a billion yuan ($159 million). During the arrests, police also confiscated thousands of bankcards.

Quoting a report from China's Xinhua News Agency, the Global Times said the arrests followed an investigation that began last November when Chinese police arrested two Taiwanese in the act of using a counterfeit bank card to withdraw cash from an ATM.

The Times reported that the case involves more money and more suspects than any previous bankcard fraud scam in China. Authorities believe the fraud originated with suspects in South Korea who obtained card data from bank customers in China by posing as bank officials  calling customers about their at-risk accounts.

Victims were directed to an official-looking website where they were instructed to log on using their account number and password. This information was then passed on to Taiwanese fraudsters who used the it to create fake bank cards, the Times report said.