U.S. law enforcement officials have seized Genesis Market, an online criminal marketplace that sold stolen login credentials and other hacked data.
The takedown, termed "Operation Cookie Monster,” involved the U.S.
Justice Department, the FBI, and law enforcement agencies in Europe,
Australia, and Canada.
- Genesis Market
was shut down after the FBI seized its domains under a warrant issued by
the District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, according to
an online message.
- 119 people have been arrested and 208 properties searched in connection to the operation.
- The
U.K.'s crime agency said it arrested 19 alleged users of the site on
suspicion of computer misuse and fraud. It was unclear how many arrests
were in the U.S.
- The Treasury Department, which was also involved, said it's likely that Genesis operated out of Russia and was on the dark web.
- The agency has sanctioned Genesis over illegal activities related to the stealing and selling of sensitive data.
- The
marketplace, founded in 2018, sold stolen credentials, digital
fingerprints, and cookies for logins via malware-infected bots.
- Authorities have linked Genesis to millions of cyber attacks and incidents, including the 2021 breach of gaming giant Electronic Arts.
