May 30, 2024 at 02:04PM
An international law enforcement operation led by Europol, Operation Endgame, resulted in multiple arrests, searches, server seizures, and takedowns of malware droppers including IcedID, Bumblebee, and Trickbot. Europol coordinated with law enforcement partners from the US and UK, leading to 4 arrests, 16 search locations, and the seizure of more than 100 servers. This is just the beginning, with more actions to come.
The meeting notes highlight the launch of an international law enforcement operation named “Operation Endgame” led by Europol. The operation has resulted in multiple arrests, searches, seizures, and takedowns of malware droppers and their operators. These actions were carried out by a coordinated effort of the EU task force and its law enforcement partners from the US and UK.
The operation targeted various malware droppers such as IcedID, Bumblebee, SystemBC, Pikabot, Smokeloader, and Trickbot. Europol revealed that it is the largest ever operation against botnets, which play a significant role in the deployment of ransomware. The law enforcement coordinated to make four arrests, search 16 locations, seize more than 100 servers, and take down over 2,000 domains used for disseminating malware.
Notably, there were three arrests in Ukraine and one in Armenia, with Europol’s investigation uncovering at least €69m in cryptocurrency earned by the main suspects. German law enforcement also added eight fugitives to the EU’s most wanted list for involvement in targeted cybercrimes. Additionally, the United States Department of Justice disrupted the 911 S5 residential proxy network, resulting in at least one arrest and the seizure of 23 domains and more than 70 servers.
It is emphasized that Operation Endgame is just getting started, with the announcement of more future actions to come on its new website. Europol plans to continue pursuing cybercriminals and has even issued a warning to them, stating, “This is Season 1 of Operation Endgame. Stay tuned. It sure will be exciting. Maybe not for everyone though.”