Security News > 2021 > March > Belgian cops crack down on encrypted phone network Sky ECC in 200 overnight raids as firm denies criminal ties

Belgian cops crack down on encrypted phone network Sky ECC in 200 overnight raids as firm denies criminal ties
2021-03-10 14:48

A series of police raids in Belgium have resulted in the apparent shutdown of the Sky ECC encrypted mobile phone network.

As the second major encrypted phone network to be shut down by police in Europe, Sky ECC's seeming downfall has parallels with the Encrochat story, where French and Dutch police man-in-the-middle'd the encrypted phone network on suspicion it was being used mainly by organised criminals.

De Standaard added that the Sky ECC network was allegedly penetrated by law enforcement last year, in the wake of the Encrochat shutdown and arrests.

Sky ECC itself was insistent that the police raids had nothing to do with it, however.

In a press release distributed through a global newswire, the organisation claimed "a fake phishing application falsely branded as Sky ECC was illegally created, modified and side-loaded onto unsecure devices, and security features of authorized Sky ECC phones were eliminated in these bogus devices which were then sold through unauthorized channels."

De Standaard reported that "At least one Antwerp criminal lawyer and a trainee lawyer have already been arrested who use Sky ECC" while also alleging it was the "Favourite means of communication used by the big drug criminals in our country".


News URL

https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2021/03/10/sky_ecc_encrypted_phones_belgium_police_raids/