Criminal gang dedicated to CaaS dismantled in Operation KAERB

EUROPOL and AMERIPOL, through the cooperation programme EL PAcCTO 2.0, have coordinated an international operation in which 17 people have been arrested in 28 home raids in 6 countries (Spain, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador and Peru), in which 921 electronic devices (mobiles, tablets and computers, among others) have been seized.

The investigation began in Spain in July 2022 after receiving information from Europol about the existence of websites for unlocking mobile phones. The investigation evolved when an organisation dedicated to CaaS (Crime as a Service) was detected, which stole mobile phones and created SMS and websites to phish victims and obtain the credentials of the stolen devices.

An estimated 1,300,000 devices (30,000 in Spain) and 5,300 fraudulent websites have been compromised. This has affected 483,000 users for at least 5 years. The authorities continue to work to recover the devices and do not rule out further arrests. In Spain, the operation was carried out by the Guardia Civil and the National Police.