An international law enforcement operation has taken down more than 373,000 dark web sites that were used to scam users with fake child abuse content.
The operation, known as Operation Alice, was led by German authorities with support from Europol.
The investigation started in 2021 and focused on a network called “Alice with Violence CP,” which was allegedly run by a 35-year-old suspect based in China. These sites claimed to offer illegal content along with other cybercrime services such as stolen credit card data and access to hacked systems.
According to Europol, the sites were designed to trick users. They showed preview images to make the content appear real and then asked users to pay using Bitcoin. Prices ranged from around 17 to 250 euros, depending on the supposed size of the content package. However, after payment, users received nothing.
Authorities say around 10,000 people were deceived by the scam, generating about 400,000 dollars for the operator. So far, investigators have identified 440 individuals across 23 countries, and about 100 of them are currently under investigation.
Even though the buyers did not receive any illegal material, law enforcement agencies stress that attempting to purchase such content is still a serious crime. It supports harmful activity and shows clear criminal intent, which is punishable in many countries.
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At its peak, the operation relied on a large infrastructure of 287 servers, with more than 100 located in Germany. All of these servers have now been seized, and an international arrest warrant has been issued for the suspect believed to be behind the network.
