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Scam Vigilante, Binance Bet, and Mustang Panda
Illicit Edge - Edition for September 23, 2026
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Hello Wednesday! It’s September 23, and we’re tracking today’s top stories: The Vigilante Who’s Taking Down Recruitment Scammers, Circle lands $100 million from Binance to ramp up global USDC expansion, Chinese hackers targeted shipping in at least seven EU countries, ‘We Hacked the FBI:’ Hackers Say They Have Data on All FBI Employees, and much more…
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Breaking News for FinCrime Professionals
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🎯 FEATURED STORY
The Vigilante Who’s Taking Down Recruitment Scammers, One Fake Job Ad at a Time. He calls himself The Profiler, and he has made it his mission to root out the bane of job seekers everywhere. Wall Street Journal
🔥 TOP STORIES
Circle lands $100 million from Binance to ramp up global USDC expansion CNBC
Binance faces U.S. scrutiny over possible Iran sanctions violations Reuters
Chinese hackers targeted shipping in at least seven EU countries Politico
‘We Hacked the FBI:’ Hackers Say They Have Data on All FBI Employees 404 Media
How Western tech helps funnel recruits into Russia’s war Politico
$5 Billion Flurry of Nearly Identical Kalshi Trades Draws Scrutiny Wall Street Journal
Research finds US$8.8 billion in Western investment funneled to sanctioned Chinese entities Hong Kong Watch
Announcing Steps to Impose Visa Restrictions on 32 Individuals Connected to Prince Group TCO & Others Scamming Americans U.S. State Department
Banks warn AI shopping bots raise scam, fraud and data-privacy risks Reuters
The Enablers Gap: Assessment of the Shadowy Craftsmen of Illicit Wealth. The Case of Kenya, Uganda and Ghana Global Financial Integrity
Two arrested in UK after Microsoft takedown of ‘Eviltokens’ AI-chatbot for cybercriminals Record
White House fraud task force will remove more than 760,000 Obamacare enrollees, some of whom may not exist CNN
Venture capital's role in a major Ponzi scheme Axios
Trump administration gave firm with ties to ballroom donor the green light to do business with a sanctioned Russian bank ICIJ
Albanian Court Orders House Arrest for Intelligence Chief OCCRP
IN THE NEWS
🚩 RUSSIA & CHINA
CATL develops pick-up truck batteries for US despite trade barriers Financial Times
Chinese hackers exploit multiple technologies to steal government data BleepingComputer
Inside Max: The Russian super-app that can spy on millions in Putin’s ‘digital gulag’ The Independent
Details of alleged Russian spy murder plots are exposed in new indictment NBC News
Moscow’s asset seizures unnerve Japanese companies in Russia South China Morning Post
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🚀 SANCTIONS & TERROR
South Korean president says Trump should ease sanctions on North Korea The Hill
Squeezed at Sea, Iran Faces New Restrictions on Its Flights Wall Street Journal
Advisory Regarding Luxury Goods and Wholesale Club Transaction Risks With Iranian Officials Under the Foreign Missions Act U.S. State Department
Egypt's NBE steps in to buy Banque Misr's UAE operations after sanctions threat Reuters
EU removes two oligarchs from Russia sanctions list as deadline looms Guardian
Police stop imminent terror attack on Manchester's Jewish community Manchester Evening News
Man behind Al-Qaeda’s media arm Al-Sahab: Abu Abd al-Rahman al-Maghribi Al Arabiya
Spain allows US extradition case against pro-Palestinian donor to proceed CNN
Argentine judge charges 7 Iranians, 1 Lebanese over 1994 AMIA Jewish center bombing AFP
💸 CORRUPTION & FINANCIAL CRIME
FBI Eyed Susan Collins Over Defense Contractor’s Donations ProPublica
Democratic megadonor who gave to Gavin Newsom and Kamala Harris linked to murky honeypot spy saga New York Post
At Dati's Renault corruption trial, a damning testimony and awkward memos Le Monde
Firm behind Trump social accounts sues ex-partner alleging he embezzled millions Politico
A family is on trial over an alleged $9.1 million investment fraud scheme NBC
🔐 CRYPTO & CYBER
A New Tool Found Malware That’s Guided by an AI Hive Mind—No Humans in Sight WIRED
U.S. regulators rush to write crypto rulebook after Clarity Act stalls in Senate CNBC
Crypto-draining FOMO app was available on Apple store for a week Protos
Whitehats move 52 bitcoin from the Coldcard hack to a recovery trust CoinDesk
Another worry for water systems: infostealer exposure CyberScoop
🚚 TRAFFICKING
Smuggling boat with people from China, Ecuador, Cuba is stopped off Florida Keys Miami Herald
Americans Are About to Lose Access to Cheap Gray-Market Prescriptions From Canada Wall Street Journal
Inside the 'modern slavery' where cyber scammers are victims themselves NPR
Meet the US Army vet running a California baby factory for Chinese nationals to have American kids New York Post
Drug cartels are making alarming drone advances Washington Post
“Anyone who conducts an argument by appealing to authority is not using his intelligence; he is just using his memory.” —Leonardo da Vinci
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