The U.S. Department of Justice announced on February 7, 2018, that a federal grand jury had charged 36 people over alleged roles in the Infraud Organization, an online criminal enterprise. A coordinated operation led to 13 arrests in the United States and six other countries. DOJ described the operation as a takedown, but the announcement did not resolve every defendant’s case.
DOJ said alleged Infraud members had caused more than $530 million in actual losses and intended losses exceeding $2.2 billion. In later releases, the department described actual losses as more than $568 million. Those are dated official case figures; the cited releases do not explain the accounting methodology behind the change.
What was the Infraud Organization?
DOJ described Infraud as an internet-based transnational criminal enterprise created in October 2010. Its slogan was “In Fraud We Trust.” According to the 2018 indictment announcement, the organization operated a forum that directed prospective buyers to member vending sites offering stolen identities, compromised payment cards, personal identifying information, financial and banking information, malware, and other contraband. The forum allegedly provided escrow for illicit digital-currency transactions and used screening protocols intended to limit advertising to approved vendors. DOJ’s February 7, 2018 announcement describes these alleged activities.
The announced hierarchy included administrators, super moderators, moderators, vendors, VIP members, and members. DOJ said Infraud had 10,901 registered members as of March 2017. These are allegations in the charging announcement, not findings that every person associated with the forum committed a crime.
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How much harm did DOJ attribute to Infraud?
| Figure | What it describes | Source and date |
|---|---|---|
| More than $530 million | Actual losses attributed to alleged members | DOJ’s 2018 indictment announcement |
| More than $2.2 billion | Intended losses alleged in the 2018 announcement | DOJ’s 2018 indictment announcement |
| More than $568 million | Actual losses described in later case releases | DOJ sentencing releases in 2021 and 2022 |
The 2018 figures came from the indictment announcement and contemporaneous DOJ remarks; the later releases repeated the higher actual-loss figure. The cited materials do not provide a detailed accounting that reconciles the totals, so they should be reported with their dates and attribution rather than treated as independently audited calculations. DOJ’s 2021 sentencing release and its 2022 release state the later figure.
DOJ Deputy Assistant Attorney General David Rybicki said in 2018 that over Infraud’s seven-year history it had targeted more than 4.3 million credit cards, debit cards, and bank accounts. The 2021 and 2022 DOJ releases instead referred to over four million compromised credit and debit card numbers. Those measures are phrased differently and should not be conflated. The 2018 remarks are available from DOJ’s transcript of Rybicki’s remarks.
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What happened in the 2018 DOJ takedown?
On February 7, 2018, DOJ announced a nine-count superseding indictment charging 36 people with alleged involvement in Infraud. The coordinated law-enforcement operation resulted in 13 arrests in the United States and six other countries. DOJ’s Acting Assistant Attorney General John P. Cronan characterized the alleged enterprise this way: “As alleged in the indictment, Infraud operated like a business to facilitate cyberfraud on a global scale.” The announcement also cautioned that indictment charges are allegations and defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What happened to defendants after the announcement?
The prosecution continued for years after the coordinated operation. The following DOJ-reported milestones are examples, not a complete account of all defendants or counts:
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- June 2020: Sergey Medvedev pleaded guilty to racketeering conspiracy, according to DOJ.
- March 19, 2021: Medvedev was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
- May 2022: John Telusma was sentenced to four years in prison, according to DOJ.
For later case materials, consult DOJ’s Infraud case page. The examples above do not establish the final status of every defendant or charge.
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