International cooperation leads to the dismantling of one of the largest global cybercrime networks
The operation against LeakBase took place in early March 2026, when international authorities carried out a coordinated action to dismantle one of the largest active cybercrime forums on the internet. According to the official statement from Europol and the United States Department of Justice, LeakBase had been operating since 2021 as an open platform where cybercriminals exchanged stolen data. With more than 142,000 registered users and hundreds of millions of leaked credentials, the forum had become a key player in the global cybercrime ecosystem.
LeakBase operated as a black market accessible even outside the Dark Web, where passwords, personal data, banking information, and hacking tools were bought and sold. The international operation, which involved law enforcement agencies from 14 countries under the coordination of Europol and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, included the seizure of domains, servers, and the forum’s entire databases. In addition, simultaneous raids were carried out with over a hundred operations, which included the arrest and identification of key users. To continue the investigations, authorities also collected evidence such as financial data, IP addresses, and private messages. This shutdown impacted the forum’s operators as well as millions of potential victims whose data had been sold.
The dismantling of LeakBase is considered a significant blow against international cybercrime, having eliminated one of its main platforms for trading stolen data. However, experts and agencies warn that the problem does not disappear with the closure of a single forum, as these types of markets tend to reappear in other forms or on more decentralized platforms. Currently, authorities continue to analyze the seized information to identify additional suspects and prevent future criminal activity, while strengthening international cooperation.
