Google Sues China-Based Hackers Behind $1 Billion Lighthouse Phishing Platform

Google has filed a civil lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York against China-based hackers behind a massive Phishing-as-a-Service platform called Lighthouse, which has ensnared over 1 million users across 120 countries. The Lighthouse PhaaS kit is used to conduct large-scale SMS phishing attacks that impersonate trusted brands such as E-ZPass and USPS, prompting victims to click on links tied to fake toll fees or package deliveries and steal financial information.

The operation has generated more than a billion dollars in illicit revenue over the past three years. According to Halimah DeLaine Prado, General Counsel at Google, “They exploit the reputations of Google and other brands by illegally displaying our trademarks and services on fraudulent websites,” and she noted that there are at least 107 website templates featuring Google’s branding on sign-in screens.

The report also notes that Lighthouse, along with other PhaaS platforms like Darcula and Lucid, is part of an interconnected cybercrime ecosystem operating out of China, which has been sending thousands of smishing messages via Apple iMessage and Google Messages’ RCS capabilities. The action seeks to dismantle the underlying infrastructure under the RICO Act, the Lanham Act, and the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. 12 November 2025