Europol’s Operation ENDGAME Strikes At Heart Of Cybercrime’s Botnet Universe – 2024
Europol’s Operation ENDGAME Strikes At Heart Of Cybercrime’s Botnet Universe
Europol and Partners Take Down Another Major Botnet Cybercrime Organization
Primary Category: Cybercrime
Authors:
• SCARS Editorial Team – Society of Citizens Against Relationship Scams Inc.
• Europol
About This Article
Europol’s largest-ever operation against botnets, dubbed Operation Endgame, targeted malware droppers like IcedID, SystemBC, Pikabot, Smokeloader, and Bumblebee. Coordinated from Europol’s headquarters between May 27 and 29, 2024, the operation aimed to disrupt criminal services by arresting high-value targets, taking down criminal infrastructures, and freezing illegal proceeds.
The multinational effort, involving countries such as France, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United States, led to four arrests, 16 location searches, and the takedown of over 100 servers. This operation, supported by Eurojust and various private partners, addressed the complex challenge of international cybercrime, highlighting the critical role of botnets in deploying ransomware.
