- Cracked Marketplace Seized, Impacting Millions of Victims.
- Nulled Marketplace Seized, Administrator Lucas Sohn Charged.
- FBI and International Partners Disrupt Major Cybercrime Operations.
The United States Department of Justice took part in a multilateral operation focused on disrupting the infrastructure of cybercrime online marketplaces named Cracked and Nulled. It included joint efforts by authorities from the United States, Romania, Australia, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, and Greece in partnership with Europol, reports US Department of Justice.
Seized Cracked Market
Cracked is an online marketplace that was founded in March 2018, selling login credentials, hacking tools, and hosting malware servers. Cracked had more than four million users, and it generated about $4 million in revenue, affecting at least 17 million victims in the United States. One of the products available on Cracked enabled users to access “billions of leaked websites” to search for stolen login credentials. This service was reportedly used to harass and extort a woman in New York.
Seized domains
The FBI, in coordination with foreign law enforcement partners, identified servers hosting Cracked’s infrastructure and seized eight domain names used to operate the platform. These actions disrupt the marketplace and will prevent further cybercrime activities. Visitors to these seized domains will see a seizure banner notifying them of the law enforcement action. It is led by the FBI Buffalo Field Office, with its case prosecuted by Senior Counsel Thomas Dougherty and Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Kruly.
Arrest of Administrator
The Justice Department also said it had seized the domain for Nulled and had unsealed charges against Lucas Sohn, 29, of Argentina, living in Spain. Nulled has been operational since 2016, selling login credentials, ID documents, hacking tools, and other cybercrime resources. More than five million users and more than 43 million posts used Nulled to generate approximately $1 million per year in revenue.
The FBI coordinated efforts with foreign law enforcement agencies to identify the infrastructure hosting Nulled and seize its domain. Visitors to the Nulled domain now see a seizure banner. Sohn, who was an active administrator of Nulled, managed transactions involving stolen credentials and information. He has been charged with conspiracy to traffic in passwords, access device fraud, and identity fraud. In case he is convicted, Sohn may spend a long time in prison because the penalties are between five to 15 years.
International Cooperation in the Takedown
The investigation is being handled by the FBI Austin Cyber Task Force, with assistance from various federal agencies. Prosecuting the case are Assistant U.S. Attorneys G. Karthik Srinivasan, Christopher Mangels, and Mark Tindall.
This operation involved the Justice Department and other international law enforcement agencies like the Australian Federal Police, Europol, France’s Anti-Cybercrime Office, Germany’s Federal Criminal Police Office, Spain’s National Police, Hellenic Police of Greece, Italy’s Polizia di Stato, and the Romanian Police. The Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs was instrumental in coordinating cross-border cooperation.
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Source: US Department of Justice
