In a significant move against online fraud, the US Treasury Department has sanctioned a Philippines-based web hosting company accused of enabling massive cryptocurrency scams. The sanctions, announced Thursday, target Funnull Technology and its administrator, Chinese national Liu Lizhi, for allegedly supplying infrastructure to online fraudsters. 

 

According to the Treasury, Funnull played a central role in supporting websites used in “pig butchering” scams—a deceptive tactic where fraudsters lure victims into fake crypto investment schemes. The platform is accused of enabling hundreds of thousands of fraudulent websites, causing over $200 million in reported losses from US victims. The agency stated that Funnull not only hosted these fraudulent domains but also generated uniquely named websites and offered ready-made design templates to scammers. These fake investment platforms were crafted to imitate legitimate sites, showcasing fabricated returns to deceive users. 

As part of the crackdown, the FBI also issued an alert, highlighting how scammers initiate contact with victims via text messages or social media, posing as a friend or potential romantic interest. After building trust, they direct victims to invest in fake crypto platforms, ultimately stealing their assets. “Funnull facilitates these scams by purchasing IP addresses and providing hosting services and other internet infrastructure to groups performing these frauds,” the FBI noted. The agency added that Funnull sources these services from legitimate US providers and resells them to cybercriminal networks. This move comes amid rising concern in the US over Asia-based scam operations, many operating out of large compounds and targeting international victims, including Americans. The sanctions mark a continuing effort to disrupt the financial and technical support enabling such cybercrime at scale.