Ukraine's SBU Security Service has stopped the activity of an international hacker group that specialized in stealing and legalizing funds taken from banking institutions in more than 20 countries. Members of the group live in Kyiv, Chernivtsi, Odesa, and Voznesensk.

The SBU's press service on Friday said agents established that the hackers with the help of special programs had received access to personal data of legal entities at banks located in the European Union, South Asia and former Soviet states. The group then submitted false payment orders and withdrew funds from the business accounts.

The SBU said legalizing the stolen money was handled through several fake financial operations with intermediary companies, some of which were controlled by Russian secret services. Each of the participants of the scheme received an agreed-upon percent from the stolen funds.

During searches of the residences of group members in Kyiv, Chernivtsi, Odesa and Voznesensk, law enforcement agents seized financial documents, confirming the forgery of bank guarantees and illegal transfer of stolen funds through popular banking systems. SBU employees also found electronic correspondence showing how the funds were legalized, in particular, through intermediary companies associated with Russian secret services.

Ukrainian agents detained the organizer of the group - a citizen of a country in the Middle East and his accomplice, who was responsible for technical aspects of the fraud.

Expert analysis is now being carried out to confirm the fact of unauthorized interference in the operation of international electronic banking systems and the relevant information has been sent to foreign partners.

The organizer and two persons involved in the case were announced suspicion under Part 2 of Article 200 (illegal actions with documents for transfer, payment cards and other means of access to bank accounts, equipment for their manufacture) of Ukraine's Criminal Code.

Immediate investigative actions are underway to bring to justice all the members of the group and their foreign accomplices.

The SBU indicated that their operation was conducted jointly with the Main Investigation Department of the National Police and Ukraine's Prosecutor General's Office (PGO).