Security News > 2023 > June > EncroChat takedown led to 6,500 arrests and $979 million seized
Europol announced today that the takedown of the EncroChat encrypted mobile communications platform has led to the arrest of over 6,600 people and the seizure of $979 million in illicit funds.
EncroChat phones ran a special, hardened version of Android that promised users unbreakable encryption, anonymity, and no traceability.
The EncroChat phones themselves were sold for a one-time payment of €1,000 and were remotely erasable if needed.
In 2020, a large-scale European law enforcement operation quietly infiltrated the EncroChat platform and was able to analyze millions of messages shared between its users after breaking the encryption algorithm.
Law enforcement agents sized €740 million in cash and froze another €154 million.
The arrested EncroChat users have so far been convicted to a total of 7,134 years of imprisonment, though not all of them have been sentenced yet.