Charges were filed yesterday against 90 individuals and companies as part of a nationwide crackdown on Internet fraud schemes.
An estimated 56,000 people were victimized in the past year by Internet auction fraud, systemic nondelivery of merchandise purchased over the Internet, credit card fraud, bank fraud, investment fraud, multilevel marketing and pyramid schemes, the U.S. Department of Justice and the FBI said.
The crimes caused losses of $117 million, the agencies said.
The charges were filed as a result of Operation Cyber Loss, which became operational a year ago and was run by the FBI's Internet Fraud Complaint Center.
The accused face various federal and state criminal charges, including fraud by wire, mail fraud, bank fraud, money laundering and intellectual property rights violations.
The government did not disclose which individuals or companies were charged.
