In a joint operation, European and British law enforcement agencies recently arrested hundreds of suspected drug traffickers and other criminals after infiltrating a global network of an encrypted chat application that was used to plan drug deals, money laundering, extortion and even murders.
Bent EncroChatThe top-secret encrypted communication app comes pre-installed on a custom Android-based phone with GPS, camera and microphone functionality removed to maintain anonymity and security.
EncroChat phones aim to exchange data and messages securely with preloaded apps for secure instant messaging, VOIP calls, self-destruct messages, and include ‘death code’ functionality to allow users to remotely erase complete data on times of trouble.
The phone and its services, which cost around £ 1,500 for a six-month subscription, had 60,000 users worldwide and approximately 10,000 users in the UK.
“EncroChat phones were presented to customers as a guarantee of perfect anonymity (no association of device or SIM card in the customer’s account, acquisition under conditions that guarantee the absence of traceability) and perfect discretion of both the encrypted interface (operating system dual, hiding the encrypted interface so as not to be detectable) and the terminal itself (removal of camera, microphone, GPS and USB port), “Europol said.
However, the encrypted communication network was not as secure as the French and Dutch police successfully hacked the network and analyzed millions of messages and hundreds of thousands of images in real time, “over the shoulder of unsuspecting senders.”
International police authorities successfully dismantled Encrochat and disrupted one of the key communication networks used by some of the most serious criminals.
The National Crime Agency, Europol and the Metropolitan Police announced Thursday that they shut down EncroChat’s servers and arrested 746 suspects, including two law enforcement officers, resulting in the seizure of:
- over £ 54 million in illegal cash,
- 77 firearms, including an AK47 assault rifle, submachine guns, pistols, four grenades, and more than 1,800 rounds of ammunition
- More than two tons of class A and B drugs
- More than 28 million pills of Etizolam (street Valium) from an illicit laboratory
- 55 high-value cars and 73 luxury watches
The NCA also worked closely with law enforcement partners to successfully mitigate more than 200 threats to life by preventing rival gangs from carrying out kidnappings and executions on the streets of Britain.
“In early 2020, EncroChat was one of the largest providers of encrypted digital communications with a very high proportion of users allegedly involved in criminal activities. User access points were particularly present in countries of origin and destination for commerce of cocaine and cannabis, as well as in money laundering. centers, “said Europol.
Law enforcement agencies claimed to have decrypted EncroChat’s encryption code in March of this year and began to penetrate data from April 1. On June 13, EncroChat realized that the platform had been breached and sent a message to users urging them to throw away their devices as their servers had been compromised by the police.
“A large number of suspects have also been arrested in several countries that did not participate in JIT (Joint Investigation Team) but were particularly affected by the illegal use of these phones by people active in organized crime, including in the UK, Sweden and Norway, “said Europol.
“The effects of the operation will continue to resonate in criminal circles for many years to come, as the information has been provided to hundreds of ongoing investigations and, at the same time, is triggering a large number of new criminal investigations of organized crime across the world. European continent and beyond. ”
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