Category: Interpol

LYON, France – Continuing the global fight against online piracy and associated crimes, a second phase of the INTERPOL-Stop Online Piracy (I-SOP) project has been launched.

Cracking down on illegal online distribution platforms, expanding international collaboration, and raising global awareness about copyright protection, the project will continue with KRW 4.2 billion (EUR 2.8 million) funding from the Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) and support from the Korean National Police Agency.

During the first phase of the project, successes included the arrest of operators behind major illegal platforms and the takedown of the EVO Release Group. This international criminal network is accused of illegally sharing copyrighted audio-visual products, causing losses of more than EUR 1 million.

MCST Minister Yu In-chon said:

“Through this agreement with INTERPOL, Korea will transcend its role as a global content powerhouse to lead in the field of copyright protection, strengthening its cultural dialogue with the world through diverse genres of K-content, including dramas, films, music, and entertainment.”

With very low risk, digital piracy can be highly lucrative for criminals, generating tens of billions of dollars each year. It also has a negative impact on the creative sector and economies through job losses, ultimately affecting consumers.

INTERPOL Secretary General Valdecy Urquiza said:

“There is no such thing as a victimless crime. Illegal streaming and downloading is not about ‘beating the system’. Online piracy is a multi-billion dollar business, with the profits often linked to other transnational crimes such as money laundering and fraud, which means a strong law enforcement response is essential.”

Lee Ho-Young, Acting Commissioner General of the Korean National Police Agency said:

“Online copyright crimes have become transnational crimes that are difficult for a single organization or country to handle. The Korean National Police Agency will work more diligently to combat online copyright crimes in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and INTERPOL.”

Created during phase one of I-SOP, the Advisory Group on Digital Piracy will continue to strengthen the project’s impact. Identifying emerging threats, promoting innovative strategies, and ensuring effective intelligence sharing, the Advisory group brings together experts from INTERPOL National Central Bureaus, specialized law enforcement units, and private sector organizations.

Public awareness campaigns will also continue to play a vital role in I-SOP through educating consumers about the risks of digital piracy, including exposure to malware and cybersecurity threats.

LYON, France – An operation targeting illegal mining in Burkina Faso, the Gambia, Guinea and Senegal has led to the arrest of 200 people.

Operation Sanu (July–October 2024) brought together experts from INTERPOL and national law enforcement agencies to combat illegal mining and associated crimes, with hundreds of officers deployed to identify criminal routes and modus operandi in remote and isolated areas of the four countries.

The cross-border collaboration led to the seizure of significant amounts of chemicals and equipment used in illegal mining: 150 kgs of cyanide, 325 kgs of active charcoal, 14 cylinders of mercury  with an estimated value of over USD 100,000, 20 litres of nitrite acid, and two 57-litre containers of sulfuric acid. 10 kilogramme of cocaine and almost 7,000 explosive devices were also seized.

Underlining the human cost of illegal mining, the operations team also seized large quantities of opioid pain relief tablets, commonly used by miners in the region to alleviate the pain caused by the use of chemicals such as mercury and cyanide in illicit small-scale gold mining. These chemicals can have serious toxic effects on the human nervous system.
 
The operation also gave INTERPOL and the law enforcement officers and prosecutors involved new insights into the wider damage caused by illegal mining in the region – from deforestation to landslides and the deviation of river flows leading to drought or flooding – as well as its impact on economies and communities in the region.

INTERPOL Secretary General Valdecy Urquiza said:

“Transnational criminal networks exploit mineral resources around the world, harming the environment, hurting national economies, weakening fragile communities, and endangering public health and safety. The operation’s success highlights the effectiveness of law enforcement when they join forces to tackle these threats.”

A first in the fight against illegal sand mining

Although the central focus of the operation was illegal gold mining, it also targeted illegal sand mining in the Gambia, with raids in several locations in the Kombo and south coastal belt region, leading to seven arrests and the seizure of mining equipment and trucks loaded with sand and gravel. The operation was a first for this type of action in the Gambia and was also an opportunity for the authorities to gain a clearer understanding of how illegal sand mining and trade is organized. Illegal sand mining has recorded unprecedented levels in recent years and is a major threat to the environment and to the livelihoods and living conditions of local communities.

Operation Sanu is part of a pilot project designed to support law enforcement agencies in their efforts to tackle the complex and multifaceted issues arising from illegal mining activities in Western and Central Africa.

Operation Sanu was carried out by INTERPOL’s Environmental Security Programme with funding by the United Kingdom’s Home Office.

Participating countries:  Burkina Faso, the Gambia, Guinea, Senegal

ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates – INTERPOL’s Asian Regional Conference has ended with senior law enforcement officials supporting increased cross sector cooperation to combat a range of crimes including drug trafficking, cybercrime and terrorism.

Among the recommendations was greater engagement with the information and communications technology sector to better detect and disrupt human trafficking facilitated online, as well as enhanced use of INTERPOL’s tools and services.

Delegates also recognized the need for engagement with civil society organizations to support the recovery and re-integration of trafficking victims.

Measures to better address current and emerging forms of terrorism across the region and beyond, supported by the participants, include:

• Enhancing intelligence sharing on subjects and modi operandi linked to chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear incidents and improvised explosive devices;
• Increasing systematic inclusion of biometrics linked to terrorist profiles in INTERPOL databases and alerts;
• Facilitating intelligence-led screening operations targeting suspected terrorists, their affiliates, cross-regional movements, financial and other support mechanisms.

With cyberattacks easily replicated in other countries or regions, increasing use of INTERPOL’s tools and capabilities to prevent, detect, investigate and disrupt cybercrime was also a key recommendation.

Stronger global coalition

The Asian Regional Conference also began the review of INTERPOL’s Global Policing Goals, which were launched in 2018 to address a range of issues related to crime and security.

More than 150 law enforcement officials from 42 countries across Asia, the South Pacific and the Middle East took part in the three-day (7-9 February) meeting.

INTERPOL’s 2022 Global Crime Trend report highlighted drug trafficking among the region’s top threats. On Wednesday, New Zealand authorities reported one of the country’s largest ever seizures after intercepting 3.2 tonnes of cocaine afloat in the ocean.

“Our member countries are reporting record seizures and increased violence by organized crime groups, which at the same time are infiltrating the legitimate economy with the billions they are making in illicit profits,” said INTERPOL Secretary General Jürgen Stock.

“With each region facing its own drug-related challenges, INTERPOL is the ideal platform to coordinate a global dialogue for a multi-layered and comprehensive law enforcement response to include linked crimes such as money laundering and corruption,” concluded Secretary General Stock.

The INTERPOL Americas Regional Conference, to be held in Chile in March, will provide an opportunity for member countries to outline the challenges they face, and contribute to developing a stronger global coalition against drug trafficking.

KIGALI, Rwanda – Efforts to boost border security in Rwanda through operational training and the enhanced use of INTERPOL policing tools saw thousands of checks carried out against its global databases.

The five-day (12 – 16 December 2022) Operation STOP (Smuggling Training and Operations Programme) aimed to strengthen efforts against cross-border crime by providing capacity building training to 20 participants on tracking the movement of criminals to identify and arrest them and safeguard potential victims via INTERPOL’s databases and I-24/7 secure communications channel.

Following the training exercise, officers from Customs, Immigration, the Rwanda Investigation Bureau and the INTERPOL National Central Bureau in Kigali were deployed to key border points in the capital and between Rwanda and Uganda.

They carried out more than 16,500 checks against INTERPOL’s databases, including those for nominal data on suspected criminals, stolen and lost travel documents, and stolen motor vehicles.

“Operation STOP enhances border security management and inter-agency cooperation. Through increased use of INTERPOL policing capabilities and mobile devices at border points, the initiative allows border officers to better check individuals and vehicles in real time, and identify potential criminals on the spot and their network.” Antoine Ngarambe, Head of the INTERPOL National Central Bureau in Kigali

Extending access to INTERPOL’s I-24/7 network and databases at key border points, with mobile technology allowing frontline officers to run instant checks, is central to the STOP initiative.

INTERPOL’s Director of Operational Support and Analysis, Cyril Gout, said: “Operation STOP is crucial in boosting the ability of officers to tackle crimes such as irregular migration, human trafficking and other cross-border crimes which harm national and regional security. Operational trainings directly enhance the crime-fighting skills of officers which are then put into practice to strengthen border security.”

At the heart of the project is the extension of access for police at strategic border points to INTERPOL’s secure global police communications network.

To this end, Rwandan frontline officers were provided with INTERPOL mobile devices such as tablets and smartphones, allowing them to run checks against INTERPOL’s databases and receive an instant response.

The STOP initiative helps member countries to protect vulnerable communities in the African region through capacity building, operational support, and the consolidation of global information-sharing platforms, providing a lasting legacy of improved national operational capacity.

The 92nd session of the INTERPOL General Assembly takes place from 4 to 7 November 2024 in Glasgow, United Kingdom.

The General Assembly is INTERPOL’s supreme governing body and comprises delegates appointed by the governments of our member countries.

It meets once a year and takes all the major decisions affecting general policy, the resources needed for international cooperation, working methods, finances and programmes of activities. These decisions are in the form of resolutions.

Agenda

This session of the General Assembly will appoint the next Secretary General for the Organization, as Jürgen Stock completes his second and final mandate after 10 years. The candidate to replace him is Valdecy Urquiza of Brazil, selected by the Executive Committee after a recruitment process earlier this year.

The Assembly will also vote for nine members of the Executive Committee, as the three-year mandates of the incumbents come to an end.

There will be four main interactive panels that will look at different aspects of the future of international policing across the Organization’s global crime programmes:

1. Biometric frontline capabilities
2. AI and the future of policing
3. Sustaining multilateralism – an integrated global security architecture
4. The future of law enforcement leadership

Other topics will cover global partnerships, governance and data processing in addition to general policing capabilities.

The Assembly will also vote to approve the programme of activities and budget for 2025.

NEW YORK, United States: INTERPOL has welcomed the adoption of the United Nations (UN) Convention Against Cybercrime by the UN General Assembly as a significant milestone in the fight against cyber threats.

The first legally binding UN instrument on cybercrime, the convention is the product of five years of government negotiations, informed by INTERPOL and other international organizations and stakeholders.

Complementing the current framework of UN crime-related treaties, it expands and updates the existing legal foundations of the international fight against crime.INTERPOL’s active participation in the discussions ensured that law enforcement perspectives and existing practical solutions to combat cybercrime were integrated into the treaty.

The convention recognizes the essential role of INTERPOL’s law enforcement network in facilitating international cooperation through the rapid and secure exchange of information on “computer-related crime” and other related criminal offences.

INTERPOL Secretary General Valdecy Urquiza said:

“Cybercrime is a uniquely borderless threat that is increasing at a dramatic rate. Cyber attacks destroy businesses, undermine public institutions, and endanger lives.

“Only by moving forward together in lockstep can countries effectively combat cybercrime. The UN cybercrime convention provides a basis for a new cross-sector level of international cooperation we desperately need.”

Record surge in cyber attacks worldwide

The UN convention establishes a framework to tackle evolving cybercrime challenges, including the illegal access and interception of electronic data; online child sexual abuse and grooming; and money laundering.

It also calls on signatories to collaborate in intercepting the illicit proceeds of cybercrime and in collecting and sharing electronic evidence.
The adoption of the UN convention comes amid a sharp escalation in the scale and complexity of cyber attacks, which increased by a record 75 per cent year-on-year in the third quarter of 2024.

In September, a two-month cybercrime operation coordinated by INTERPOL and AFRIPOL saw law enforcement from 19 African countries arrest 1,006 suspects and dismantle 134,089 malicious infrastructures and networks.

INTERPOL helps law enforcement across its 196-country membership more effectively combat cybercrime by sharing intelligence – including from private sector partners – coordinating operations and conducting training programmes.

Learn more about INTERPOL’s approach to combating cybercrime on our website: https://www.interpol.int/en/Crimes/Cybercrime

LYON, France – An innovative new operation to tackle the emerging trend of human trafficking facilitated by technology, including social media, apps and other digital platforms, has been launched by INTERPOL and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).

The initiative is a response to a worrying pattern of victims being trafficked from Latin America, lured by fake or deceptive job offers. They are then taken to another country, increasingly in Europe, where they are subject to exploitation, mainly through prostitution.

This first-of-its-kind operation took place from 19 to 22 November 2024, during which the participating officers were supported by INTERPOL’s capabilities in human trafficking, facial recognition, cybercrime and criminal analysis.

Throughout the action days, participating countries worked side by side poring over information from websites and messaging apps. Significant results included the identification of:

• 68 potential victims
• 146 potential exploiters, recruiters and facilitators
• 365 usernames and 162 URLs linked to suspicious activity.

Cyril Gout, INTERPOL’s Acting Executive Director of Police Services, said:

“Technology is, now more than ever, facilitating all forms of organized crime – human trafficking is no exception. This innovative operational week at INTERPOL’s headquarters successfully brought together officers at both ends of this troubling trafficking flow between Latin America and Europe. Their hard work led to the detection of hundreds of incidents and data elements that will be the basis for further investigation.”

In one case, the Netherlands and Venezuela were able to collect facial images of women advertised as Venezuelan escorts on European websites and run them through INTERPOL databases. A match was made to a Blue Notice – a notice which seeks to collect information about a person’s identity or location because of a suspected connection to, or knowledge of, a criminal investigation.

The operation also detected an influx of Brazilian women on adult service websites advertised in Ireland, with one individual suspected to be behind the numerous accounts. Police from Ireland and Brazil worked together to identify a suspected recruiter with links to an organized crime group. A similar pattern was observed by the United Kingdom, which identified a domestic services website closely connected to a page offering sexually explicit content.

Officers from Spain and Colombia teamed up to investigate the recruitment of Colombian women to work as escorts in Spain, only to be forced into prostitution. To be released from their debt, victims were being asked to pay EUR 12,000.

Meanwhile, police from the Netherlands focused on examining active Telegram groups featuring offers for sex workers which showed signs of exploitation. They were able to extract a range of images, usernames and even telephone numbers, which were shared with all participating officers, prompting multiple further probes.

In another example, officers from Germany detected a potentially underage victim being advertised in Switzerland. The case was communicated to Swiss authorities via INTERPOL’s secure messaging system for further investigation, helping to verify the victim’s age and locate potential traffickers.

This inaugural event provided valuable intelligence that will be used to initiate many more new investigations and support ongoing cases. It was also an opportunity for countries to share experiences, exchange knowledge and acquire new detection strategies, ultimately enabling them to better navigate this complex criminal landscape.

The operation, led by INTERPOL, was supported by Europol, META, STOP THE TRAFFIK, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and financed by Global Affairs Canada and the OSCE.

Participating countries:

Brazil, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, Spain, United Kingdom, Venezuela