Hackers target 500,000 credit cards in Australia

Overseas hackers have targeted 500,000 credit cards in Australia resulting in over USD 25 million fraudulent transactions, the police said today.

Scammers targeted about half a million credit card numbers of Australian businesses, ABC news reported. "The compromise is believed to have involved approximately 500,000 credit cards and resulted in more than USD 25 million in fraudulent transactions," Australian Federal Police said in a statement today.

"The borderless nature of this crime type poses new and unique challenges for law enforcement," it said. The Australian Federal Police said investigations are continuing and officers are working with police overseas.

"International and private sector cooperation is critical to the Australian Federal Police's ability to target this type of compromise, which is a challenging and time consuming process," it added.

Police have asked people to regularly check their financial statements and advise their banks if they notice any irregular transactions.