A multinational coalition of 17 law enforcement agencies has cracked down on the largest illicit dark web market in the world in an extensive operation dubbed Operation Cookie Monster. Thousands of stolen identities and online login passwords that were being sold on the marketplace were found thanks to this international investigation. The FBI and Dutch National Police-led operation has significantly hindered global efforts to combat cybercrime.
The platform in question was Genesis Market, founded in 2018, which harvested data from malicious software deployed by hackers into computer networks. It advertised and sold stolen data such as usernames, passwords, bank account details, and device fingerprints like computer and mobile phone identifiers. According to law enforcement agencies, the site had offered over 80 million account access credentials from more than 1.5 million compromised computers worldwide since its inception, including thousands of credentials stolen from over 460,000 devices that were advertised for sale when it was taken offline.
Rob Jones, Director General and Threat Leadership of Britain’s National Crime Agency (NCA) stated, "Behind every cybercriminal or fraudster is the technical infrastructure that provides them with the tools to execute their attacks and the means to benefit financially from their offending. Genesis Market was a prime example of such a service and was one of the most significant platforms on the criminal market.”
The operation seized not only stolen identities but also browser fingerprints which can be used for identity theft. Louise Ferrett, an analyst at British cybersecurity firm Searchlight Cyber said that these browser fingerprints are harvested from computers infected with malicious software.
Europol’s Head of the European Cybercrime Centre Edvardas Šileris said, "Through the combined efforts of all the law enforcement authorities involved, we have severely disrupted the criminal cyber ecosystem by removing one of its key enablers.”
The importance of this operation cannot be understated – it has set a valuable precedent for international cooperation in cybercrime-fighting initiatives. In addition to tracking down those responsible for malicious software deployment and identity theft activities on this platform, police have also taken measures to prevent future occurrences with preventative activity such as searches and arrests.
While Operation Cookie Monster may have been successful in taking down one marketplace selling stolen identities, it is essential to remain vigilant against other forms of cybercrime that are still out there – such as hacking and phishing attacks – in order to ensure secure online transactions and prevent identity theft in the future.
