Going after the darknet - from The Hill:
DOJ takes down dark net marketplaces
The Department of Justice (DOJ) on Thursday said it had shut down the online criminal market AlphaBay and one of its chief competitors, Hansa.
"This is likely one of the most important criminal cases of the year," said Attorney General Jeff Sessions at a press conference.
Sessions said the DOJ had seized the infrastructure and arrested the criminal market's owner, ending speculation about why AlphaBay had recently disappeared.
And this about Hansa:
After AlphaBay went dark, many of its patrons moved to Hansa, a competitor, not knowing that law enforcement had taken control of that site as well.
"Make no mistake, the forces of law and justice face a new challenge from the criminals and transnational criminal organizations who think they can commit their crimes with impunity by 'going dark,' " said Sessions.
"This case, pursued by dedicated agents and prosecutors, says you are not safe. You cannot hide. We will find you, dismantle your organization and network. And we will prosecute you."
Busted. The darknet is nothing to protect - it sells illegal goods. Good that the various world governments (AlphaBay was run from Thailand, Hansa from the Netherlands) are waking up to the dangers of these organizations. Security expert Brian Krebs once had a black-hat hacker buy heroin and have it shipped to his home - the intent was to call the cops when it arrived. Here is his tale (February 17, 2017):
Men Who Sent Swat Team, Heroin to My Home Sentenced
It’s been a remarkable week for cyber justice. On Thursday, a Ukrainian man who hatched a plan in 2013 to send heroin to my home and then call the cops when the drugs arrived was sentenced to 41 months in prison for unrelated cybercrime charges. Separately, a 19-year-old American who admitted to being part of a hacker group that sent a heavily-armed police force to my home in 2013 was sentenced to three years probation.
And here is Brian on the Hansa bust:
Exclusive: Dutch Cops on AlphaBay ‘Refugees’
Following today’s breaking news about U.S. and international authorities taking down the competing Dark Web drug bazaars AlphaBay and Hansa Market, KrebsOnSecurity caught up with the Dutch investigators who took over Hansa on June 20, 2017. When U.S. authorities shuttered AlphaBay on July 5, police in The Netherlands saw a massive influx of AlphaBay refugees who were unwittingly fleeing directly into the arms of investigators. What follows are snippets from an exclusive interview with Petra Haandrikman, team leader of the Dutch police unit that infiltrated Hansa.
Quite the story at his site - good work all around!
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