German cybercriminals likely collaborate with Russian underground market
Russian's underground market is a "well-functioning assembly line" that plays "big brother" to German cybercriminals, according to a report by vendor Trend Micro.
Among underground market staples such as malware, fake documents and data breach dumps, German cybercriminals cater for a niche market, hacking into people's DHL Parcel Germany Packstation accounts which manage automated self-service booths for the collection and dispatch of parcels and letters.
While offering as many wares as it can, the German underground market struggles to thrive due to language barrier limitations and its overall size, claims the study.
According to the report, it is "safe to assume" that German criminals turn to the thriving and highly efficient Russian underground market, one of the pioneers in the underground economy, to learn from their big brother.
Although there is no global underground market, cybercriminals do collaborate with each other worldwide, sharing tools, intelligence and know-how with their peers, claims Trend Micro.
Tough competition pushes the Russian market to provide the latest wares in the shortest possible time while also guaranteeing the anonymity of their buyers and sellers.
The report describes the North American worldwide web as a "glass tank," referring to the ease with which law enforcement and hackers alike can access secure material.
Due to this, cybercriminals operating in regions with strictly implemented laws such as North America and Germany remain anonymous by accessing the Deep Web, sections of the internet that are not discoverable through standard search engines.
North America is reportedly the only region in the world in which murder-for-hire or assassination services are available through the underground market.