Booming underground economy — report

Symantec has released a report that details an online underground economy that has matured into a global market in which stolen goods and fraud-related services are regularly bought and sold and where the estimated value of goods offered by individual traders is measured in millions of dollars.

The report is derived from data gathered by the company's Security Technology and Response (STAR) organisation, from underground economy servers between 1 July 2007 and 30 June 2008.

The potential value of total advertised goods was more than US$276 million for the reporting period. This value was determined using the advertised prices of the goods and services and measured by how much advertisers would make if they liquidated their inventory.

Credit card information is the most advertised category of goods and services on the underground economy, accounting for 31% of the total. While stolen credit card numbers sell for as little as US$0.10 to US$25 per card, the average advertised stolen credit card limit seen by the company was more than US$4000. 

The potential worth of all credit cards advertised during the reporting period was calculated at US$5.3 billion.

The popularity of credit card information is probably due to the many ways this information can be obtained and used for fraud. Credit cards are easy to use for online shopping and it's often difficult for merchants or credit providers to identify and address fraudulent transactions before fraudsters complete these transactions and receive their goods.

Also, credit card information is often sold to fraudsters in bulk, with discounts or free numbers provided with larger purchases.

The second most common category of goods and services advertised was financial accounts at 20% of the total. While stolen bank account information sells for between US$10 and US$1000, the average advertised stolen bank account balance is nearly US$40,000.

Calculating the average advertised balance of a bank account together with the average price for stolen bank account numbers, the worth of the bank accounts advertised during this reporting period was US$1.7 billion.

The popularity of financial account information is likely due to its potential for high payouts and the speed at which payouts can be made. In one case, financial accounts were cashed out online to untraceable locations in less than 15 minutes.

During the reporting period, the company found 69,130 distinct active advertisers and 44,321,095 total messages posted to underground forums.

The underground economy is geographically diverse and generates revenue for cybercriminals who range from loose collections of individuals to organised and sophisticated groups.

During this reporting period, North America hosted the largest number of such servers, with 45% of the total, Europe/Middle East/Africa hosted 38%, followed by Asia/Pacific with 12% and Latin America with 5%. The geographical locations of underground economy servers are constantly changing to evade detection.