One of the Largest Dark Web Sites Has Been Shut Down by the German Police

One of the largest global dark web illegal markets has been shut down in Germany. It happened when the alleged mastermind of the illegal bazaar DarkMarket was arrested. It was considered to be the “eBay for the criminals” as it had over half a million global users.

The news says it had around 2,500 vendors. They used to sell illegal items like hacking tools, fake money, stolen credit cards, drugs, and more.

How Did it Happen?

The DarkMarket was shut down on January 12, 2021. An Australian man named Julian K, 34, was caught trying to flee from Denmark to Germany. He was the accused mastermind of the illegal DarkMarket masterminding 220 million US dollars.

Details of the Event

According to a prosecutor in Germany, Julian K is originally from Queensland, Australia. He was the ringleader of DarkMarket and had over 20 computer servers across Moldova and Ukraine. It’s important to keep in mind that these were the main servers that hosted pretty much everything for the DarkMarket. All of those servers are also confiscated thanks to the operation involving Scotland Yard, FBI, and German Police.

Because of the rules and regulations of the German Police investigation process, the full names cannot be released. Moreover, the Australian police have also provided their input in the investigation process. It allowed the authorities to find out another dark web site.

Investigation of the Event

The prosecutor and news say that the accused Australian appeared before the judge in a German court. However, he did not say a single word. Therefore, he was sent to jail on remand.

Koblenz Public Prosecutors’ Attorney General, Jurgen Brauer, said the cybercriminal was not living in Germany before his arrest. He was only in the country as he was on a European journey, he said. The attorney added that it is quite possible that he was here in Europe to make more connections or to spend his holidays. At this point, it’s not safe to say what he was doing here, but the fact of the matter is that he was travelling through Europe.

The attorney also stated in a press conference that Julian K was also investigated against Cyberbunker. It’s a similar case with a group of criminals who hosted a darknet website from a Cold War bunker. When the criminal was caught, the servers in Moldova and Ukraine were taken. The data about Cyberbunker was also captured. Therefore, it opened new doors for further investigation that could lead the authorities to capture more darknet platforms. The data showed that the accused Australian got help. He received assistance from at least two other managers or administrators to run DarkMarket.

Information that was Revealed Regarding the DarkMarket

The easiest way to understand how DarkMarket was working is to imagine the concept of something like eBay. It was a platform where users could register themselves to paddle their wares, and Julian K was its founder. As mentioned, this platform had almost 2.5 thousand sellers and about half a million users.

The German prosecutor said the data shows over 320,000 transactions worth about 220 million US dollars. The main form of payment on the DarkMarket was Monero and Bitcoin Cryptocurrencies.

Authorities Involved

The LZC and ZKI Oldenburg worked with police from several countries. These countries include Moldova, Ukraine, Switzerland, Denmark, Britain, and Australia. Additionally, Rhineland-Palatinate and Lower Saxony are state criminal investigation agencies. They also cooperated with American authorities like the IRS, DEA, and FBI.

Even though Julian K is Australian, Australia supported his arrest. They also gave the needed information to the German authorities.

The Results of this Event Will go a Long Way

The experts say this is an important result. It will affect many dark web markets and platforms worldwide. It will demonstrate to the darknet users and vendors how international law enforcement agencies can catch them. It will also provide the authorities with the required confidence to target the darknet platforms selling illicit products.

Why Dark Web Needs to be Shut Down

The dark web is the deepest layer of the internet involving all types of bad and unhealthy activities. The users and sellers here break the laws all the time by hosting and supporting anonymous, complex, and large-scale platforms. These platforms help enable serious crimes. These include stolen identification, extremist content, trafficking of firearms and drugs, and child sexual abuse.

The biggest problem of the dark web is that the criminals remain anonymous while doing all the negative things. It not only affects our community’s well-being, but it also makes it hard to find the criminals.

References:

• https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/police-shut-down-ebay-of-the-dark-web-in-germany-90jjjk823
• https://digit.fyi/illegal-product-platform-darkmarket-shut-down-by-police/
• https://www.news.com.au/world/aussie-arrested-over-220m-dark-web-drug-site/news-story/229026c7758e1b089404c88db1f48b12

Written by The Original PC Doctor on 28/1/2021.