Texts Claim Hack of Encrypted Phone Company Used by Hitmen

guest · Jun 19, 2020

Texts Claim Hack of Encrypted Phone Company Used by Hitmen
Messages allegedly sent to Encrochat users warned of a law enforcement takeover
June 19, 2020
https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/z3emm3/encrochat-encro-hacked-encrypted-phones

A series of text messages allegedly sent to users of Encrochat, a company which sells custom encrypted phones including to serious organized criminals, claim that law enforcement agencies have taken over some of the company's infrastructure.
"Encros finished," a source in the encrypted phone industry told Motherboard, referring to Encrochat.

"Today we had our domain seized illegally by government entities(s) [sic]," a message allegedly sent to Encrochat users published by Dutch crime blog Crimesite reads. "They repurposed our domain to launch an attack to compromise the carbon units," it continues, referring to a particular type of Encrochat device. Motherboard could not independently verify any hack, nor could it verify that the message came from Encrochat.
Click to expand...

"Due to the level of the sophistication of attack and the malware code, we can no longer guarantee the security of your device. We took immediate action on our network by disabling connectivity to combat the attack," the alleged message adds.

The source in the encrypted phone industry said that recently law enforcement agencies have raided criminal gangs throughout Europe that use Encrochat.
Click to expand...

guest · Jun 22, 2020

Encrypted Phone Network Says It's Shutting Down After Police Hack
June 22, 2020
https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/5dz9qx/encrochat-hacked-shutting-down-encrypted-phone

Someone in control of an email address long associated with Encrochat, a company that sells custom encrypted phones often used by organized criminals, tells Motherboard the company is shutting down after a law enforcement hacking operation against its customers.

The news comes as law enforcement agencies have arrested multiple criminal users of Encrochat across Europe in what appears to be a large scale, coordinated operation against the phone network and its users.

"We have been forced to make the difficult decision to shut down our service and our business permanently," the person wrote in an email to Motherboard. "This [sic] following several attacks carried out by a foreign organization that seems to originate in the UK."
Click to expand...

stapp · Jul 2, 2020

A top-secret communications system used by criminals to trade drugs and guns has been "successfully penetrated", says the National Crime Agency.
"Iconic" crime figures were among 746 arrests after messages on EncroChat were intercepted and decoded.
Click to expand...

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-53263310

guest · Jul 2, 2020

How Police Secretly Took Over a Global Phone Network for Organized Crime
July 2, 2020
https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/3aza95/how-police-took-over-encrochat-hacked

Something wasn't right. Starting earlier this year, police kept arresting associates of Mark, a UK-based alleged drug dealer. Mark took the security of his operation seriously, with the gang using code names to discuss business on custom, encrypted phones made by a company called Encrochat. For legal reasons, Motherboard is referring to Mark using a pseudonym.

The documents obtained by Motherboard detail some of the information intercepted by authorities, and lay out not only the actions of one alleged drug dealer, but show just how deeply law enforcement seems to have breached alleged criminal organizations.
Click to expand...

The messages show how gangs allegedly directed members to gather money from customers, how to launder it safely, and where to hide drugs. In meticulous and timestamped sections, the Encrochat messages lay out alleged crime after crime.

"They're just lifting people," another source close to criminal users of Encrochat told Motherboard as the arrests started happening. Motherboard granted multiple sources in this story anonymity to protect them from retaliation from law enforcement or violent criminals.

Already, other encrypted phone companies are trying to fill the void left by Encrochat. A company called Omerta has been advertising directly to Encrochat's old customers.
Click to expand...

FanJ · Jul 2, 2020

Europol Press Release - 2 July 2020
Dismantling of an encrypted network sends shockwaves through organised crime groups across Europe
https://www.europol.europa.eu/newsr...-through-organised-crime-groups-across-europe

At a joint press conference today, French and Dutch law enforcement and judicial authorities, Europol and Eurojust have presented the impressive results of a joint investigation team to dismantle EncroChat, an encrypted phone network widely used by criminal networks.
Click to expand...

It's a long article. Read more there.

stapp · Jul 2, 2020

FanJ said: ↑

It's a long article. Read more there.
Click to expand...

I wish they had left the black text like they had at the beginning of the article and not changed it to 'eye strain grey'
I stopped reading after a while because of that.

guest · Sep 15, 2020

European Police Malware Could Harvest GPS, Messages, Passwords, More
A document obtained by Motherboard provides more detail on the malware law enforcement deployed against Encrochat devices
September 15, 2020
https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/k7qjkn/encrochat-hack-gps-messages-passwords-data

The malware that French law enforcement deployed en masse onto Encrochat devices, a large encrypted phone network using Android phones, had the capability to harvest "all data stored within the device," and was expected to include chat messages, geolocation data, usernames, passwords, and more, according to a document obtained by Motherboard.

The document adds more specifics around the law enforcement hack and subsequent takedown of Encrochat earlier this year.
Click to expand...

guest · Nov 13, 2020

EncroChat hack evidence wasn't obtained illegally, High Court of England and Wales rules – trial judges will decide whether to admit it
November 13, 2020
https://www.theregister.com/2020/11/13/encrochat_hack_judicial_review_judgment/

The contents of messages from encrypted chat service EncroChat may be admissible as evidence in English criminal trials, the High Court in London, England has ruled.

A legal challenge to a warrant used by the National Crime Agency for gaining access to hacked data obtained by the French and Dutch authorities has failed, leaving it up to individual judges whether they allow the contents of hacked messages to be used in court or not.
Click to expand...

In other words, the EIO warrant can be applied on a dragnet basis for obtaining copies of evidence gathered by foreign investigators based in the EU – without proving reasonable suspicion against any individual UK suspect first.
Interestingly, the NCA appears not to have cared that foreign police were hacking Britons, with the judgment noting that the French and Dutch forces told the NCA that they were going to hoover up messages from Britons regardless of whether or not they were given permission.
Click to expand...

guest · Nov 26, 2020

Fifth Northern Ireland arrest in NCA Encrochat drug investigation
November 26, 2020
https://www.nationalcrimeagency.gov...nd-arrest-in-nca-encrochat-drug-investigation

A fifth person has been arrested by the National Crime Agency in Northern Ireland as part of a major investigation into the alleged importation of drugs, linked to the encrypted phone network Encrochat.
Michael Anwyl, 33, of Irwin Avenue, Limvady, handed himself in to Coleraine Police Station yesterday.
Click to expand...

The NCA investigation was launched after analysis of messages shared on Encrochat, the encrypted messaging platform that was brought down earlier this year as part of Operation Venetic.
NCA Belfast branch commander David Cunningham said:

“We suspect those Encrochat messages contained details of drug importations and cash movements linked to a Northern Ireland-based organised crime group.
Click to expand...

guest · Jul 2, 2021

31 people sentenced to 366 years in prison in first year after Encrochat platform taken down
July 1, 2021
https://www.merseyside.police.uk/ne...year-after-encrochat-platform-was-taken-down/

A year ago news of Operation Venetic and the takedown of Encrochat (a mobile encryption service exploited by criminals involved in serious organised crime across the UK and Europe) became public.

And since then UK police forces, led by the NCA, have been working on identifying the criminals who were using the service for their ill-gotten gains.
And this is just the beginning, with more activity and arrests to come in the coming months.
Click to expand...

guest · Aug 25, 2021

Drug Dealers Get 27 Years After Police Crack EncroChat Comms
August 25, 2021
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/drug-dealers-police-crack-encrochat/

A drug dealer has been given a ten-year jail sentence after officers monitored his encrypted communications with other suppliers, according to the National Crime Agency (NCA).

Lee Broughton, 40 from Epsom, was sentenced last week at Kingston Crown Court after pleading guilty back in April to supplying cocaine.
His case was one of the many that the NCA is working on as part of Operation Venetic, after international law enforcers cracked a popular encrypted chat platform.

He was apparently linked to the EncroChat moniker after revealing in one conversation the date of his birthday.
Click to expand...

guest · Nov 19, 2021

Suspected EncroChat Drug Trafficker Faces Trial
November 20, 2021
https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/suspected-encrochat-drug/

A suspected prolific drug trafficker is set to face trial following an international operation to crack a popular encrypted chat network used by criminals, according to the National Crime Agency (NCA).

The UK agency for serious and organized crime revealed that 44-year-old Kamran Butt had been extradited to Germany, where he is now remanded in custody of the Bundeskriminalamt (federal police) awaiting trial.
A Hamburg judge issued a European arrest warrant for Butt in October 2020. He was subsequently found to be living in Woolwich, south-east London
Click to expand...

Operating from servers in France, it was thought to be one of the largest such encrypted comms services around – with 60,000 global users, including 10,000 in the UK, who used it to smuggle contraband, coordinate money-laundering operations and even plan hits on rivals.

It required its own bespoke devices, with camera, mic, GPS and USB ports removed. Devices didn’t require users to link a SIM with their account, and users could remotely wipe the entire handset with a kill code.
Click to expand...

National Crime Agency (NCA): Suspected member of EncroChat-using international drug trafficking group extradited to Germany

Log in or Sign up

Texts Claim Hack of Encrypted Phone Company Used by Hitmen

guest Guest

guest Guest

stapp Global Moderator

guest Guest

FanJ Updates Team

stapp Global Moderator

guest Guest

guest Guest

guest Guest

guest Guest

guest Guest

guest Guest

Log in or Sign up

Texts Claim Hack of Encrypted Phone Company Used by Hitmen

guest Guest

guest Guest

stapp Global Moderator

guest Guest

FanJ Updates Team

stapp Global Moderator

guest Guest

guest Guest

guest Guest

guest Guest

guest Guest

guest Guest

Useful Searches