Massive International Cooperation shuts down thousands of data thieving websites, leads to numerous arrests.
Here Comes the Ruckus:
Operation Secure: The International Cybercrime Blitz
Total chaos in the cyber underworld as Operation Secure nails criminals left, right, and center
They've struck a major blow to the cyber underworld, and boy, did they make some noise! For four long, grueling months, Interpol and their partners from across the globe teamed up to take down a massive network of infostealers and other nasties in Operation Secure.
The lowdown:
In January 2025, Operation Secure kicked off, and law enforcement agents from a whopping 26 nations got to work, taking on cybercriminals in an international slugfest. The crusade included agencies from Asia-Pacific powerhouses like Brunei, India, Japan, South Korea, and Sri Lanka, to name but a few.
They made things difficult for the bad guys, with brutal Intelligence Sharing making waves across the web. This collaborative effort paved the way for the identification and takedown of command-and-control servers, a key element in various malicious campaigns, including phishing scams, fraud, and social media shenanigans.
Enter the fray:
Over the course of the operation, police authorities arrested more than three dozen criminals, with 18 going down in Vietnam, 12 in Sri Lanka, and the rest in Nauru. The big fish themselves, running the entire operation, was found with a cool $11,500, a heap of SIM cards, business registration papers, and plans to open and sell corporate accounts.
The Unstoppable Force:
In addition, authorities confiscated 41 servers and seized more than 100 gigabytes of data. What's more, they put a stop to 20,000 malicious IP addresses connected to information stealers. There were also 216,000 potential victims identified, and some of these unfortunates have already been notified.
By the way, some private cybersecurity companies, like Group-IB, Kaspersky, and Trend Micro, came aboard to provide valuable intel that greatly helped the cause.
"Interpol continues to support practical, collaborative action against global cyber threats," said Neal Jetton, Interpol's Director of Cybercrime. "Operation Secure has once again shown the power of intelligence sharing in disrupting malicious infrastructure and preventing large-scale harm to both individuals and businesses."
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