Europol’s Operation SIMCARTEL Busts Cybercrime Cartel – 40,000 SIMs Seized and Millions Saved!
Europol’s Operation SIMCARTEL has busted a cybercrime-as-a-service platform that was running a SIM farm, seizing 40,000 SIM cards and arresting seven suspects. The platform enabled phishing, investment fraud, and even WhatsApp impersonations, proving once again that crime doesn’t pay, but it might just text you for a loan.
Hot Take:
Oh, Europol, you’ve done it again! Taking down a global cybercrime ring and making the world a safer place, one shady SIM card at a time. It’s like the Ocean’s Eleven of cyber operations, but instead of George Clooney, we’ve got some mighty fine law enforcement officers in the spotlight. Move over, Hollywood; Europol’s got the real drama!
Key Points:
– Europol’s operation, dubbed Operation SIMCARTEL, led to the arrest of seven suspects and seizure of 1,200 SIM box devices.
– The crackdown involved authorities from Austria, Estonia, Finland, and Latvia, with Europol and Eurojust leading the charge.
– Over 1,700 cyber fraud cases in Austria and 1,500 in Latvia were attributed to the criminal network, with losses totaling €4.5 million and €420,000, respectively.
– The CaaS platform enabled a range of crimes, including phishing, investment fraud, extortion, and more.
– The operation also resulted in the seizure of luxury vehicles, frozen bank and cryptocurrency accounts, and the dismantling of five servers.