On 30 September 2026, law enforcement took control of KillSec’s leak site, securing at least 110 terabytes of data against further unauthorised access. The cybercrime group used the site to threaten organisations with the publication of stolen files unless they paid a ransom.
The action was part of Operation KillSwitch, an international investigation led by German authorities into around 1 000 suspected attacks worldwide. Investigators identified a 16-year-old as the group’s suspected main operator. Three suspects were provisionally arrested and eight properties searched in Greece, Romania, Spain, and the United Kingdom. Authorities also targeted the group’s criminal proceeds.
KillSec stole sensitive data by exploiting vulnerabilities and poorly secured access points to organisations’ systems. Around 500 of the suspected attacks have so far been identified as successful. This figure may change as investigators examine the evidence seized during the operation.
Read more…
Source: EUROPOL News
Sign up for the Cyber Security Review Newsletter
The latest cyber security news and insights delivered right to your inbox
Related:
- Russia arrests third hacking group, reportedly seizes carding forums
February 7, 2022
Russia arrested six people today, allegedly part of a hacking group involved in the theft and selling of stolen credit cards. Russian media reports that the arrests come at the request of investigators from the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation. “The Tverskoy Court of Moscow received petitions from the investigation to select a measure ...
- Twitter users in the UK can still be jailed for sending ‘grossly offensive’ tweets
February 7, 2022
It comes as a shock to many, but sending nasty tweets can be a criminal offense in the United Kingdom. Those found guilty can face fines, community service, and even time in jail. The latest example is the case of 36-year-old Joseph Kelly of Castlemilk, Glasgow, who was found guilty last week of sending a “grossly ...
- Europol coordinates action against bomb manuals available online
February 3, 2022
On 1 February, a large-scale Referral Action Day targeting terrorist content online took place at Europol’s headquarters. The European Union Internet Referral Unit (EU IRU) at Europol’s European Counter Terrorism Centre (ECTC) coordinated the referral activity, which saw the involvement of specialised counter terrorism units from France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland ...
- Russia: FSB arrests, dismantles REvil hacking group at U.S. request
January 14, 2022
Russia has conducted a special operation against ransomware crime group REvil at the request of the United States and has detained and charged the group’s members, the FSB domestic intelligence service said on Friday. The hacker group sought by Washington has been dismantled and the United States has been informed of the steps taken by Russia, ...
- California town announces data breach involving police department, loan provider
January 10, 2022
Grass Valley, California has announced an extensive data breach involving the Social Security numbers and more of all city employees and vendors — as well as anyone who had their information given to the local police department. The city said in a notice that Social Security numbers, driver’s license numbers, and health insurance information was leaked ...
- Russian hackers leak confidential UK police data on the ‘dark web’ after their ransom was rejected
December 19, 2021
Confidential information held by some of Britain’s police forces has been stolen by Russian hackers in an embarrassing security breach, The Mail on Sunday can reveal. The cyber-criminal gang Clop has released some of the material it plundered from an IT firm that handles access to the police national computer (PNC) on the so-called ‘dark web’ ...