International law enforcement have worked in-correlation with each other to arrest nearly two hundred criminals. This co-ordinated raid on marketplaces that originate from the dark web resulted in $6.5 Million in Drugs, Guns, Virtual Currencies, and Cash to be confiscated. There were a total of 179 people arrested from the European Union & North America. 64 Guns were collected, with the majority being pistols. Europol has stated that this co-ordinated arrest terminates underground marketplaces & ends their golden age of illegal operations.

The Europol Cybercrimes Centre headed this co-ordinated raid, evoking that the hidden internet isn’t secretive any longer. Europol handled the arrests across Europe, with the American Department of Justice handling cases in the United States. The raid was adeptly named “Disrupt Tor”, in reference to a web-browser named TOR. It’s estimate that together they’ve eliminated thousands of sales for illicit goods & services throughout international waters. Drugs seized from these illegal sales include Fentanyl, Methamphetamine, Oxycodone, Cocaine, Heroin, MDMA, and Ecstasy. Eliminating a large percentage of these sales saves the lives of young Europeans & Americans consuming these drugs.

Internationally, there was 179 criminals arrested for engaging with illegal dark web behaviour. It was found that 119 of these individuals were from America, with 42 residing in Germany. Eight arrested were from the Netherlands, four from the United Kingdom, three living in Austria, two operating in Canada, and one engaging in illegal activities throughout Sweden’s borders.

New Methods

Global law enforcement have learned unique methods to target dark web activity, which requires specialized tools. It’s the dark webs largest raid & will likely setback activity for a prolonged period. The raid followed after the Department of Justice terminated an illegal Wall Street Market on the dark web in 2019. That takedown taught the DOP numerous tactics to utilize tools better than digital criminals or hackers. Completing this raid proves strategies employed by Europol & the Department of Justice are becoming more effective.

Researcher for Digital Shadows, a monitoring service for illegal activity on the dark web, evoked that this raid prominently affects organized cybercrime. Kacey Clark emphasized that “Disrupt Tor” will be similar to the Hansa & Alpha Bay raids, which lowered criminal activity with the dark web.