Illegal set-top boxes from China could hijack your bank details

Thousands of people are at risk of falling victim to computer crime through buying illegal set-top TV boxes that can stream up to 800 channels, a senior detective warned today.

The £100 boxes being imported from China are deliberately infected with malware viruses designed to spy on people’s bank accounts and social media sites, the officer said.

Commander David Clark, of the City of London police, blamed an “Only Fools And Horses mentality” for people buying cheap imported goods because they think they are getting a bargain.

Police say they are investigating a huge increase in the number of people buying the illegal TV boxes to avoid subscription fees.

Commander Clark, the national lead for economic crime, said buyers did not realise that apps on the boxes often contained malware that could infect other devices in their homes.

He said: “The country is now rife with these boxes and there is a high percentage that have malware installed. I would urge people to think carefully about what they are opening up their home and their private life to. This is linked to organised crime in China.

“People are risking having their personal details stolen and exploited by organised crime.” He added: “I think the UK public can sometimes suffer from an Only Fools And Horses mentality in accepting cheap goods.”

Commander Clark said at present police only investigate criminals who distribute the TV boxes. However, he warned that detectives were considering taking action against individuals who had installed the devices.

Speaking at a cyber security conference in the City, Commander Clark also warned of the potential risk of a cyberterror attack in London. He raised the scenario of hedge fund traders being held to ransom and forced to “fat finger trade” — carrying out trading errors by pressing the wrong button — in order to send financial markets into meltdown. He asked: “Is it feasible? Could the future terrorist attack by purely cyber to make a vast profit or send the global markets into meltdown?”

The officer said there were “countless” terror arrests being made across the UK that ended in fraud charges linked to computer-generated fake identities, credit cards or fraudulent loans.