An international coalition of law enforcement agencies has dismantled a vast cybercriminal proxy network that enabled hackers to conceal their identities and carry out illegal online activities across the globe. The coordinated operation, announced by the European Union’s judicial cooperation agency Eurojust on March 13, marks one of the most significant efforts in recent years to disrupt digital infrastructure used by cybercriminal groups.

The large-scale operation involved authorities from eight countries and was supported by Europol, the European Union’s law enforcement agency. Investigators successfully shut down the hidden online service that operated the illicit proxy network, cutting off access for thousands of cybercriminal clients who relied on it to hide their digital footprints.

According to officials involved in the investigation, the network relied on malware that secretly infected hundreds of thousands of internet-connected devices. These devices primarily included home and office modems and routers, which are essential pieces of hardware that allow users to connect to the internet.

Authorities estimate that approximately 369,000 devices across 163 countries had been compromised. Once infected, the devices were silently integrated into the proxy network without the knowledge of their owners. This allowed the network’s operators to route internet traffic through these unsuspecting devices, effectively masking the true origin of online activity.

In practical terms, this meant that cybercriminals could appear to be operating from almost anywhere in the world. By routing their traffic through infected devices located in different countries, they could evade detection by investigators and bypass regional cybersecurity restrictions.

Experts say that such networks pose a major challenge for law........

© Blitz