Hacking a Facebook account (stealing an account), then texting relatives and friends of that account with the content of borrowing money is an old, simple trick, however, recently a lot of people have fallen into the trap.
Article table of contents
1. Increasingly sophisticated tricks of high-tech criminals
This criminal's method is to often choose Vietnamese people living and working abroad, then program to create fake websites of the form of Voting for Vietnamese children's voices, Voting for scenic spots, Voting for beauty queens, etc. which contain boxes to enter Facebook account information and then send a text message to send this website link to Facebook accounts.
When the Facebook account owner logs in to vote, the subject will have the password and then take over the right to use and text and contact relatives of that Fakebook account to borrow money or ask to transfer large amounts of money to the victim's virtual bank account or send a fake money transfer order notice, with a link to a fake bank website, asking the victim to access and check. Combined with the fraudulent bank's OTP code obtained from the victim, then controlled the Internet banking account, appropriating all the money in the victim's bank account.
After hacking and appropriating the account, they carefully "study" the transaction history and messages exchanged between friends or relatives and the account owner. From there, decide to choose an account to set up a money transfer fraud scenario. In addition, criminals use the trick of "buying" other people's bank accounts or using fake ID cards to set up bank accounts, and instructing the victim to transfer money to these accounts makes investigation and verification by the police difficult.
2. Administrative sanctions or criminal sanctions?
When the person whose Facebook was hacked discovers that his/her Facebook account has been hacked and the hacker is using that account to scam money from his/her relatives, he/she can report this act to the police investigation agency of the district police station where the person who hacked this account resides. If the person's place of residence cannot be determined and who the victim is, the victim can file a complaint with the district police where the victim resides. In the denunciation, the victim needs to clearly state the content of the incident and attach evidence to prove that the denunciation is well-founded, such as the content of the message via Facebook, phone number, and Facebook address.
At that time, depending on the nature and extent, acts of fraudulent appropriation of property will be prosecuted for criminal liability or handled for administrative violations according to the provisions of law.
Administrative sanctions:
Persons who use the Facebook account of someone they hacked to appropriate another person's property will be subject to administrative sanctions according to Point c Clause 1 Article 15 of Decree No. 167/2013/NĐ-CP of Vietnam’s Government with a fine ranging from VND 1,000,000 to VND 2,000,000.
Moreover, persons who hack other people's Facebook accounts can also be punished according to the provisions of Article 80 of Decree No. 15/2020/NĐ-CP of Vietnam’s Government, specifically as follows:
Article 80. Violations against regulations on illegal provision or use of information in cyberspace
1. A fine ranging from VND 10,000,000 to VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for decrypting, stealing and/or using passwords, cryptographic keys and information of other organizations/individuals in cyberspace.
2. A fine ranging from VND 30,000,000 to VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for the commission of one of the following violations:
a) Illegally accessing networks or digital devices of others to override such devices or change/delete information stored on such devices or change setting parameters or collect information of others;
b) Infiltrating, altering or deleting information of other organizations/individuals in cyberspace;
c) Obstructing the information system’s provision of services;
d) Preventing the access to information of other organizations/individuals in cyberspace, unless such prevention is permitted by law;
dd) Causing insecurity or breaking confidentiality of information exchanged, transmitted or stored in cyberspace of other organizations/individuals.
3. Additional penalties:
Foreigners who commit the violation in Clause 1 or 2 of this Article shall be deported from the territory of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
Criminal prosecution:
According to Article 174 of the Criminal Code 2015 of Vietnam:
Article 174. Obtaining property by fraud
1. A person who uses deception to obtain another person's property which is assessed at from VND 2,000,000 to under VND 50,000,000 or property assessed at under VND 2,000,000 in any of the following circumstances shall face a penalty of up to 03 years' community sentence or 06 - 36 months' imprisonment:
a) The offender has incurred an administrative penalty for appropriation of property;
b) The offender has an unspent conviction for theft of property or any of the criminal offences specified in Article 168, 169, 170, 171, 172, 173, 175 and 290 hereof;
c) The offense has a negative impact on social safety, order and security;
d) The property illegally obtained is the primary means of livelihood of the victim and the victim's family; the property illegally obtained is a souvenir, memento or religious item that has a spiritual value to the victim.
2. This offense committed in any of the following circumstances carries a penalty of 02 - 07 years' imprisonment:
a) The offense is committed by an organized group;
b) The offense is committed in a professional manner;
c) The property obtained is assessed at from VND 50,000,000 to under VND 200,000,000;
d) Dangerous recidivism;
dd) The offense involves abuse of the offender's position or power or committed in the name of an agency or organization;
e) The offender employs deceitful methods to commit the offense;
g) The property obtained is assessed at from VND 2,000,000 to under VND 50,000,000 or but the offender commits the offense in any of the circumstances specified in Point a through d Clause 1 of this Article.
3. This offense committed in any of the following circumstances carries a penalty of 07 - 15 years' imprisonment:
a) The property obtained is assessed at from VND 200,000,000 to under VND 500,000,000;
b) The property obtained is assessed at from VND 50,000,000 to under VND 200,000,000 or but the offender commits the offense in any of the circumstances specified in Point a through d Clause 1 of this Article.
c) The offender takes advantage of a natural disaster or epidemic to commit the offense.
4. This offense committed in any of the following circumstances carries a penalty of 12 - 20 years' imprisonment or life imprisonment:
a) The property stolen is ≥ VND 500,000,000;
b) The property obtained is assessed at from VND 200,000,000 to under VND 500,000,000 or but the offender commits the offense in any of the circumstances specified in Point a through d Clause 1 of this Article.
c) The offender takes advantage of a war or state of emergency to commit the offense.
5. The offender might also be liable to a fine of from VND 50,000,000 to VND 200,000,000, be prohibited from holding certain positions or doing certain works for 01 - 05 years or have all or part of his/her property confiscated.
Persons who hack Facebook accounts and then text messages to scam money, depending on the extent and nature of the act, may be prosecuted for criminal liability for property appropriation fraud with a prison sentence of up to 20 years or life imprisonment.
- Key word:
- Decree No. 15/2020/NĐ-CP
- Criminal Code 2015
