NewsPublished 26 Oct 2026

Dutch Police Arrest Two Over NFC Relay Attacks That Drained $400,000+ From Bank Accounts

Source SecurityWeek

Description

Dutch police arrested two individuals involved in a bank helpdesk fraud scheme that used NFC relay attacks to steal over $400,000 from 170 victims. The suspects called victims, played AI-generated audio impersonating banks, and persuaded them to install an app to scan their credit cards via NFC. The stolen card data was then used to withdraw money from victims' accounts at ATMs. The suspects were arrested and their infrastructure seized.

Impact

The scheme resulted in financial theft exceeding $400,000 from at least 170 victims. Victims' bank accounts were drained using stolen NFC card data obtained through social engineering and malicious applications. The attack exploited victims' trust and the NFC contactless payment feature to bypass traditional security controls.

Defensive guidance

The suspects have been arrested and their infrastructure taken offline by Dutch authorities, effectively disrupting the scheme. No specific vendor patches or technical mitigations apply. Users should be cautious of unsolicited calls claiming suspicious bank activity and avoid installing unverified applications or scanning cards on unknown devices. Banks should continue to educate customers about social engineering risks and monitor for fraudulent transactions.

Summary

This threat involves a social engineering and NFC relay attack scheme where suspects called victims, used AI-generated audio to impersonate banks, and convinced victims to install an app that scanned their credit cards' NFC chips. The extracted card data was sent to accomplices who withdrew funds from victims' bank accounts. The scheme caused financial losses exceeding €380,000 (~$425,600) across 170 victims. Dutch police arrested two suspects responsible for orchestrating and coordinating the attacks, and seized their servers and devices.

References

securityweek.com/dutch-police-arrest-two-over-nfc-relay-attacks-that-drained-400000/ (opens in a new tab)

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Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 26 Oct 2026, 11:52 UTC

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