Category: Intelligence

Source: Europol

Headline: High-profile investigation: fugitive member of migrant smuggling network wanted in Hungary arrested by Guardia Civil in Tenerife

The Migrant Smuggling Unit of the Hungarian National Bureau of Investigation is leading a high-profile investigation into an organised crime group (OCG) suspected of being involved in various smuggling incidents for financial gain during the 2015-2016 migration crisis. The OCG facilitated the highly-organised and structured illicit transportation of irregular migrants along the Western Balkan corridor. The group also ran the biggest illegal safe house in Budapest, which was dismantled in 2017 in a previous operation. During the ongoing investigation it was established that one Hungarian member of the migrant smuggling ring fled Hungary to an unknown location, fearing criminal charges. A European Arrest Warrant was issued as the fugitive’s whereabouts was unknown.

By exchanging information with the support of Europol, Spanish law enforcement informed Hungarian authorities of the fugitive’s possible location. The continuing cooperation between Hungary and Spain led to locating the fugitive in the Canary Islands on 23 January 2018, after a car suspected to be that of the fugitive’s was found parked on the street. The fugitive was eventually arrested in Tenerife by the Spanish Guardia Civil.

Enhanced information exchange and cooperation between Hungary and Spain was facilitated by Europol and also involved Austrian, German, Italian and Polish law enforcement authorities. In 2017 the European Migrant Smuggling Centre supported a total of 93 high-profile investigations.

Source: Europol

Headline: Safer Internet Day

The Safer Internet Day (SID) is a global movement celebrated in over 130 countries each year. Its aim is to promote the safe and positive use of digital technology, especially among children and young people, and to call each stakeholder to play their part in creating a better internet for all. Each year on this day, millions of people unite to inspire positive change, and Europol is proud to join the cause. In 2018, we are supporting its theme: “Create, connect and share respect: A better internet starts with you” by sharing our tips and advice on online safety, a reminder for all, but especially for the youngest among us, on responsible and careful online behaviour.

In order to achieve a safer Europe for the benefit of all the EU citizens, Europol is strongly committed fighting against cybercrime: the European Cybercrime Centre (EC3), established in 2013, works to prevent and detect all forms of cybercrime in the EU and drives intelligence-led, coordinated actions against key cybercrime threats through cross-border investigations and operations by Europol’s partners.

As a form of cybercrime, child sexual exploitation is one of Europol’s priority crime areas under the 2018-2021 EU Policy Cycle. In this context, EC3 provides assistance and expertise in combatting the distribution of child abuse material through online environments, and tackles the criminal online behaviour against children, such as grooming, self-generated indecent material, sexual extortion and live distant child abuse.

At the same time, several prevention and awareness-raising campaigns, guides, and materials have been set up over the last years to empower EU citizens to protect themselves online. The Say No! and Deterring youngsters from cybercrime campaigns are especially relevant, as they target young people, parents and carers, teachers and educators.

Europol Executive Director Rob Wainwright stated: “Education, both at home and at school, has traditionally placed emphasis on teaching youngsters about respect, both for those around them and for themselves. Our societies have developed based on this very principle and so have we as citizens. If this has worked in the offline world, then why not pursue the same goal online? I encourage everyone to spend a moment thinking about their online behaviour and how, simply by being respectful to others online, they can help make the internet a better and safer place for all.”

Everyone has a responsibility to make a positive difference online. Follow our advice to stay safe in the digital age:

Source: Europol

Headline: International crackdown on anti-spyware malware

A hacking tool allowing cybercriminals to remotely and surreptitiously gain complete control over a victim’s computer is no longer available as a result of an UK-led operation targeting hackers linked to the Remote Access Trojan (RAT) Luminosity Link. Coordinated by the UK National Crime Agency with the support of Europol, this operation saw the involvement of over a dozen law enforcement agencies in Europe, Australia and North America.

Once installed upon a victim’s computer, a user of the Luminosity Link RAT was free to access and view documents, photographs and other files, record all the keystrokes entered and even activate the webcam on the victim’s computer – all of which could be done without the victim’s knowledge.

These joint actions were carried out back in September 2017, the details of which can now only be released due to operational reasons.

Europol’s European Cybercrime Centre (EC3) supported the countries in their efforts to identify EU citizens by providing analytical support and by facilitating information exchange in the framework of the Joint Cybercrime Action Taskforce, hosted at Europol’s headquarters in The Hague.

Victims across the world

The investigation uncovered a network of individuals who supported the distribution and use of the RAT across 78 countries and sold it to more than 8 600 buyers via a website dedicated to hacking and the use of criminal malware. Luminosity Link cost as little as EUR 40.00 and required little technical knowledge to be deployed.

Victims are believed to be in the thousands, with investigators having already identified evidence of stolen personal details, passwords, private photographs, video footage and data. Forensic analysis on the large number of computers and internet accounts seized continues.

Steven Wilson, Head of Europol’s European Cybercrime Centre, said: “Through such strong, coordinated actions across national boundaries, criminals across the world are finding out that committing crimes remotely offers no protection from arrests. Nobody wants their personal details or photographs of loved ones to be stolen by criminals. We continue to urge everybody to ensure their operating systems and security software are up to date”.

Prevention advice

The public and businesses can follow simple steps to help protect themselves from malware, including:

• Update your software, including anti-virus software;
• Install a good firewall;
• Don’t open suspicious email attachments or URLs – even if they come from people on your contact list;
• Create strong passwords.

For more prevention advice on how to protect yourself against Remote Access Trojans, check our crime prevention advice.

Source: Europol

Headline: Europol, Thomson Reuters and the World Economic Forum launch coalition to fight financial crime and modern slavery

The fight against financial crime and modern slavery has been given fresh impetus at the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum with the launch of a new public/private coalition comprising Europol, Thomson Reuters and the World Economic Forum. The perpetration of financial crimes has a devastating socio-economic impact on individuals and communities around the world. Every year, the estimated $2.4 trillion in proceeds from this and other causes of human misery such as forced prostitution, terrorism and drug trafficking will be laundered through the world’s financial markets and banking systems. Despite substantial amounts of human and economic capital deployed at stopping financial crime, less than 1% is detected and confiscated via existing mechanisms.

The amount of money laundered globally in one year is estimated by the United Nations to account for 2-5% of global GDP (around $2 trillion). Criminal networks are becoming increasingly connected, global and technologically sophisticated. Against this backdrop, additional collective action must be brought to bear to combat financial crime in order to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals target 8.7 to eradicate forced labour, end modern slavery and human trafficking, and secure the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labour. Public-private cooperation is key for the identification and implementation of innovative strategies that address this challenge while avoiding unintended consequences, such as a further retrenchment in access to the global financial system for individuals and institutions. The coalition, which is seeking additional members, will work to mobilise and influence decisions-makers at the highest levels to achieve the following objectives:

• raise awareness among global leaders on the topic of financial crime as a critical challenge with grave financial and human consequences
• promote more effective information sharing between public and private entities on a coordinated, global level
• establish enhanced processes to share compliance best practice and approaches to more robust customer due diligence

Rob Wainwright, Executive Director of EUROPOL, said: “Europol launched in December 2017 the first transnational financial information sharing mechanism, the Europol Financial Intelligence Public Private Partnership. All the members of this partnership, comprising experts from financial institutions and competent authorities, have actively started to share financial intelligence in a trusted environment. Ultimately, our objective is to facilitate, in accordance with the applicable domestic legal frameworks, the exchange of operational or tactical intelligence associated with on-going investigations. We also aim to identify ways in which the regulations for information sharing could be improved. Europol welcomes any idea of a complimentary public-private sector coalition to encourage more policy commitment for a more efficient fight against financial crime.”

David Craig, President of Financial & Risk at Thomson Reuters said: “In 2011, the UN report estimated that less than 1% of criminal funds flowing through the international financial system every year are believed to be frozen and confiscated by law enforcement. Move forward six years and those of us dealing with this issue day in day out expect to find a similarly low percentage. The fragmentation we witness across global political, regulatory, economic and social spheres is creating barriers to our success. Meanwhile criminal networks are becoming more connected, more global and more technologically sophisticated. Now more than ever there is a pressing need for public and private organizations to work together across borders to secure our future by developing new strategies for sharing data and adopting new technologies in the fight against financial crime. We must not accept being one step from failure – it’s time for a fresh approach.”

Matthew M. Blake, Head of the Financial & Monetary Systems Initiative at the World Economic Forum commented: “Safeguarding the Financial System against bad actors is of paramount importance for financial stability and system integrity. The World Economic Forum is keen to leverage its platform to see this consortium develop innovative and impact-focused solutions to this urgent, complex challenge.”

Source: Europol

Headline: 11 arrests and 16 victims safeguarded in operation against sexual exploitation of women

The victims were Nigerian women who were tricked into working as prostitutes by using voodoo threats to control them

Source: Europol

Headline: IP crime: high-level meeting on a joint strategy at Europol

Figures from studies produced by the OECD and EUIPO show that counterfeit and pirated products represent up to 5% of all EU imports, worth up to 85 billion. Brands that suffer the most from IP infringements are primarily registered in the EU.

The Europol-EUIPO joint report points out the significant involvement of organised crime in IP infringements.

Considering the above, a high level meeting took place at Europol, with representatives from CEPOL, EUIPO, Europol, Eurojust and the European Commission (OLAF, TAXUD, GROW) to discuss how to step up cooperation to fight IP crime.

During the meeting participants highlighted the importance of data exchange and analysis, as well as of enhanced cooperation between EU and national authorities. Concrete actions to make the fight against IP infringements more efficient and effective were discussed.

Participants expressed the wish to meet on a regular basis and to set up a framework to ensure that progress is made on agreed actions.