Lyon, France: A major international cybercrime crackdown led by INTERPOL has resulted in the takedown of more than 45,000 malicious IP addresses and servers linked to phishing, malware, and ransom ware activities.
The operation, named Operation Synergia III, was conducted from 18 July 2025 to 31 January 2026 with the participation of law enforcement agencies from 72 countries and territories. The participating countries and territories are Angola, Argentina, Austria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana Brazil, Brunei, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Colombia, Democratic Rep of Congo, Eritrea, Eswatini, France, Gambia, Georgia, Greece, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Guyana, Honduras, Iceland, India, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liechtenstein, Macao (China), Madagascar, Malaysia, Maldives, Moldova, Mongolia, Niger, Nigeria, North Macedonia, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Paraguay, Philippines, Poland, Qatar, Singapore, South Africa, South Sudan, Spain, Sri Lanka, Switzerland, Tanzania, Togo, Türkiye, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, Venezuela, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
The coordinated effort led to the arrest of 94 suspects, while another 110 individuals are currently under investigation.
During the operation, INTERPOL converted cyber intelligence into actionable information, enabling cross-border collaboration, raids on key locations, and disruption of malicious online infrastructure. Authorities also seized 212 electronic devices and servers connected to cybercriminal activities.
According to Neal Jetton, Director of the Cybercrime Directorate at INTERPOL, the operation highlights the importance of global cooperation in combating sophisticated cyber threats. He emphasized that cybercrime is becoming increasingly complex, and coordinated international efforts are crucial to dismantling criminal networks and protecting victims worldwide.
Preliminary investigations revealed various cybercrime tactics used by criminals, including fraudulent websites, romance scams, social media hacking, loan and job scams, identity theft, and credit card fraud.
In notable cases:
* Authorities in Macau (China) identified more than 33,000 phishing and fraudulent websites, many impersonating banks, government portals, and payment platforms to steal victims’ financial information.
* Police in Togo arrested 10 suspects involved in hacking social media accounts and running romance scam operations.
* In Bangladesh, police arrested 40 suspects and seized 134 electronic devices linked to cyber fraud schemes.
INTERPOL also collaborated with cyber security partners including Group-IB, Trend Micro, and S2W to track malicious online infrastructure and identify cyber criminal networks operating across multiple countries.
The operation demonstrates the growing need for international cooperation and intelligence sharing to effectively combat cybercrime and safeguard the global digital ecosystem.
