Police from 19 countries, in coordination with Interpol, arrested 574 cybercriminals and decrypted six ransomware programs.
Until now, Africa has remained relatively untouched by cybercrime due to its less developed technological infrastructure. But this situation is changing at an alarming rate. Interpol's Operation Sentinel concluded with the arrest of 574 people.
Between October 27 and November 27, law enforcement agencies in 19 countries removed more than 6,000 malicious links and decrypted six different types of ransomware, enabling file recovery without paying the ransom.
In a statement , Neil Gayton, Interpol’s Director of Cyber Crime, said: “The scale and sophistication of cyberattacks in Africa are increasing at an accelerating pace, particularly against critical sectors such as finance and energy. The results of Operation Sentinel reflect the commitment of African law enforcement agencies.”
The cybercrime cases investigated involve economic losses exceeding $21 million.
In Senegal, a major oil company uncovered a sophisticated cyber fraud operation in which cybercriminals hacked into internal email systems and impersonated executives to approve a fraudulent bank transfer of US$7.9 million.
A financial institution in Ghana was hit by a ransomware attack, in which 100 terabytes of data were encrypted and nearly $120,000 was stolen, disrupting vital services.
Ghanaian authorities conducted advanced malware analysis, enabling them to identify the type of ransomware and develop a decryption tool that recovered nearly 30 terabytes of data. Several suspects have been arrested.
Ghanaian authorities also dismantled a large-scale online fraud network operating in Ghana and Nigeria, which had defrauded more than 200 victims of over US$400,000.
The fraudsters used websites and mobile apps, impersonating well-known fast-food brands, and collected payments without delivering orders. Ten suspects were arrested in Ghana, more than 100 digital devices were seized, and 30 fraudulent servers were shut down.
In Benin, 43 malicious domains were removed and 4,318 social media accounts linked to extortion and fraud were shut down, resulting in 106 arrests.
Cameroonian law enforcement responded swiftly after two victims reported a scam targeting an online car sales platform. The phishing campaign was traced to a compromised server, and emergency bank account freezes were issued within hours.
As with Europol’s latest operations, international cooperation between police forces is key to taking action against cybercriminals who are increasingly spreading globally.