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   Global police operation takes down major cybercrime and hacking forums   
      
   Date:   
   Fri, 31 Jan 2025 16:02:00 +0000   
      
   Description:   
   Two forums with 10 million users were shut down, and two people were arrested.   
      
   FULL STORY   
   ======================================================================   
    - German police and international partners complete Operation Talent   
    - The operation saw two forums seized, two individuals arrested, and plenty   
   of money confiscated   
    - Cracked and Nulled were allegedly the go-to places for facilitating   
   cybercrime    
      
   An international law enforcement operation, spearheaded by German authorities   
   and involving Europol, the FBI, and many other European national police   
   forces, has resulted in the takedown of two major hacking forums, multiple   
   arrests, and the seizure of cash and cryptocurrency.    
      
   A Europol press release outlined how "Operation Talent" took place between   
   January 28 and 30, and resulted in two arrests, seven properties searched, 17   
   servers and more than 50 electronic devices seized, and some 300,000 euros    
   and cryptocurrency confiscated.    
      
   Perhaps the biggest news, however, is the takedown of two major hacking   
   forums: Cracked, and Nulled, which, Europol says, between them had more than   
   10 million users.   
      
   Operation Talent    
      
   Both of these underground economy forums offered a quick entry point into the   
   cybercrime scene, Europol explained in the press release. These sites worked   
   as one-stop shops and were used not only for discussions on cybercrime but   
   also as marketplaces for illegal goods and cybercrime-as-a-service, such as   
   stolen data, malware or hacking tools. Investigators estimate that suspects   
   earned EUR 1 million in criminal profits.    
      
   In the takedown process, law enforcement agents seized 12 domains, and took   
   down the financial processor Sellix and a hosting provider called StartRDP.    
      
   Besides Europol and the FBI, the operation included the Australian Federal   
   Police, Frances Anti-Cybercrime Office, Germanys Federal Criminal Police   
   Office (which led the entire operation), Prosecutor Generals Office Frankfurt   
   am Main - Cyber Crime Center, Greeces Hellenic Police, Italys State Police,   
   Romanias General Inspectorate of Romanian Police, Spains National Police, and   
   the US Department of Justice.    
      
   This is not the first hacking forum law enforcement took down. BreachForums,   
   arguably the largest place of its kind, was shut down in April 2023,    
   following the arrest of its administrator, Conor Brian Fitzpatrick. In its   
   place, Breached was formed, and is today the go-to place for all things   
   cybercrime.   
      
   ======================================================================   
   Link to news story:   
   https://www.techradar.com/pro/security/global-police-operation-takes-down-majo   
   r-cybercrime-and-hacking-forums   
      
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