Life Sentence Handed to Hydra Marketplace Operator, MATRIX Messaging App Shut Down, and German Police Shut Down CrimeNetwork Marketplace.
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This Week's Roundup of the Biggest Cybersecurity Stories
Life Sentence Handed to Hydra Marketplace Operator
The alleged mastermind behind dark web market Hydra, Stanislav Moiseev, received a life sentence in Russia and a fine of four million rubles ($37,500) for running the online marketplace. He was charged by Russian authorities with the production and sale of psychotropic substances and drugs. Hydra was shut down in 2022 following the seizure of servers and cryptocurrency wallets by German law enforcement. According to Russian prosecutors, Hydra was facilitating transactions worth around a billion rubles ($9,300,000) per year.
MATRIX Messaging App Shut Down
The efforts of a joint investigation by French and Dutch authorities resulted in the takedown of another encrypted messaging service called MATRIX. MATRIX was first discovered by Dutch authorities on the phone of a criminal convicted for the murder of a Dutch journalist in 2021. More than 40 servers in several countries were used to run MATRIX. Authorities were able to intercept and monitor activity on the service for three months, deciphering over 2.3 million messages in 33 languages linked to crimes such as international drug trafficking, arms trafficking and money laundering.
German Police Shut Down CrimeNetwork Marketplace
Dark web marketplace, CrimeNetwork, was shut down and a suspected administrator arrested in a coordinated effort by German police on December 2nd. The platform, facilitated activities such as dealing drugs, stolen data, and counterfeit documents. According to the Federal Criminal Police Office, the site had over 100,000 users and more than 100 registered sellers. The 29-year-old arrested is accused of acting as a technical administrator of the platform and has been charged with operating a criminal trading platform and dealing in narcotics.
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