Arrests in the Genesis Market case.

Europol yesterday reported that Tuesday’s seizure of the Genesis Market criminal marketplace was a combined operation involving 17 countries. 119 people were arrested, 208 properties were searched, and a reported 97 “knock and talk measures” took place. This combined effort was spearheaded by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Dutch National Police (Politie). A US Department of Justice (DoJ) press release from yesterday discloses that law enforcement seized 11 domain names that were in support of the Genesis Market infrastructure. 

International cooperation, from Milwaukee to the Hague, via London.

The FBI Milwaukee field office led the case’s investigation, with assistance from 44 other field offices and a multitude of assistance from international law enforcement agencies. Security Week aptly notes, however, that the FBI’s mention of seized domains asks for those in contact with the marketplace’s administrators to contact them, which may indicate that the operators of the site may not yet be identified.

The United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency reported 24 UK-based arrests, and says that arrests and preventive action will continue. The Dutch National Police have provided a resource to check whether or not your email was available on Genesis Market. Chris Carr, the Attorney General for the state of Georgia, announced yesterday that the Prosecution Division of his office is taking part in the investigation into the marketplace’s suspected users, and the press release shares that website “Have I Been Pwned” has been provided with the credentials of the victims, which allows those who suspect they may be impacted to check if their credentials are compromised.

“Today’s takedown of Genesis Market is a demonstration of the FBI’s commitment to disrupting and dismantling key services used by criminals to facilitate cybercrime,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “The work in this case is a great example of the FBI’s ability to leverage our technical capabilities and work shoulder-to-shoulder with our international partners to take away the tools cyber criminals rely on to victimize people all across the world.”