Honduras Sees Rise in Identity Theft Amid Digital Banking Boom

The Dark Side of Convenience

Tegucigalpa, Honduras - As digital transactions become more prevalent, Hondurans are facing a new threat: identity theft. Cybercriminals have been exploiting the system, engaging in malicious activities that put individuals and financial institutions at risk.

A Growing Problem

According to Lieutenant Colonel Ubaldo Rodríguez, regional chief of the Central East Zone of the Honduran National Anti-Gang Force (FNAMP), banks’ efforts to innovate with technology have inadvertently created an opportunity for gangs to commit extortion. “Members of maras and gangs take advantage of these vulnerabilities to commit crimes,” he said.

Combatting Cybercrime

The FNAMP has been working to combat cybercrime by providing basic training to its personnel on computer-related crimes. Members of the Intelligence Analysis Unit receive specialized training to become cybercrime specialists, enabling them to track identity theft and other malicious activities online.

• Training Capabilities:
  • Identity theft tracking
  • Deep web tracking
  • Forensic extraction
  • Advanced software and hardware search
• “Our goal is to prevent mara and gang members from committing more sophisticated crimes such as phishing, identity theft, or personal information theft,” Lt. Col. Rodríguez explained.

Rise in Cybercrime

Cybercrime in Honduras has seen a significant increase of 500 percent between 2018 and 2020, according to data from the Honduran National Police Investigations Directorate. In addition to extorting people, criminals have been using their cyber knowledge to break into government computer platforms and erase criminal offenses.

Awareness Campaign

To combat this trend, the FNAMP launched an awareness campaign in early 2021 on ways to stay safe online and report complaints. Colonel Amílcar Hernández, FNAMP director, noted that “criminal organizations create fake profiles to extract information about victims, and then engage in threats and intimidation to demand large amounts of money as extortion.”

Results

The agency’s efforts have yielded results, with the capture of a criminal gang of 11 people engaged in threatening and collecting extortion money in August 2021. The capture was made possible thanks to victim reports.

• Captured Individuals: 1,250
• Prevented Extortion Payments: $400,000

Conclusion

“For us at the FNAMP, our greatest achievement is that we have not lagged behind in technology,” Lt. Col. Rodríguez concluded. “We anticipate criminal actions and counteract and prevent threats from becoming greater.”