International Crackdown Unveils Massive Online Fraud Operation

An international collaborative effort targeting alleged online fraud and money laundering networks has resulted in 18 arrests, as German authorities reported on Wednesday. The operation, led by Germany's Federal Criminal Police Office and prosecutors, uncovered a scheme using stolen credit card details from 4.3 million individuals across 193 countries.

The criminal network allegedly defrauded over 300 million euros by funneling funds through subscriptions to fraudulent websites, including those purporting to offer streaming, dating, and entertainment services. Key to their scheme was the compromise of four leading German payment service providers.

Late on Tuesday, authorities announced coordinated searches in multiple countries, including Germany, Italy, Canada, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Singapore, Spain, the U.S., and Cyprus, as part of the crackdown.