A global police operation has dismantled an encrypted communication platform called Ghost, which was allegedly used by criminals, leading to 51 arrests worldwide.
Ghost was used as a tool to “carry out a wide range of criminal activities, including large-scale drug trafficking, money laundering, instances of extreme violence and other forms of serious and organised crime,” Europol stated.
The European Union’s law enforcement agency stated that 51 suspects were arrested: 38 in Australia, 11 in the Republic of Ireland, one in Canada, and one in Italy.
Jung, who reportedly launched Ghost nine years ago, was arrested in the early hours of Sept. 17 at a house in Sydney.
Europol said that “threats to life were prevented,” a drug laboratory was dismantled in Australia, and weapons, drugs, and more than 1 million euros ($1.1 million) in cash were recovered.
Europol said Ghost had gained traction among criminal organizations because of its advanced security features. Users could purchase the tool without providing any personal information.
The platform “used three encryption standards and offered the option to send a message followed by a specific code which would result in the self-destruction of all messages on the target phone,” the agency stated.
Europol estimated that about 1,000 messages were being exchanged daily on Ghost.
An operational task force to tackle and track the network was established by Europol in March 2022, involving law enforcement authorities from Australia, Canada, France, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, and the United States.
A joint investigation team was then set up between French and U.S. authorities in January.
‘Game Is Up’
“This was a true global game of cat and mouse, and today, the game is up,” Europol Deputy Executive Director Jean-Philippe Lecouffe told reporters. “This success is not just about shutting down the platform. It’s about shutting down the very idea that crime can operate in the shadows.”Irish police said 42 suspected Ghost-encrypted devices, 153 other electronic devices, and an amount of cocaine worth 15.2 million euros ($16.9 million) had been seized in the country as a result of the operation.
The Europol-led operation against Ghost follows similar operations against SkyECC and EncroChat, which led to thousands of arrests and convictions in Europe and elsewhere.
“We are sending a clear message, no matter how sophisticated the technology, no matter how well hidden the platform, we will bring it down,” Lecouffe said. “This is not our first takedown, and you can be sure that is not the last one.”
