An international cybercrime operation coordinated by INTERPOL has dismantled 45,000 IP addresses and servers responsible for phishing, malware and ransomware attacks, leading to the arrest of 94 suspects across Nigeria and 71 other countries and territories.

INTERPOL disclosed in a Friday statement obtained by SunOnline that law enforcement from 72 countries and territories participated in the operation.

The six-month exercise codenamed Operation Synergia III took place between July 2025 and January 31, 2026.

Besides the 94 suspects already arrested, another 110 individuals remain under investigation.

INTERPOL disclosed that during the operation, it transformed data into actionable intelligence, facilitated cross-border collaboration, and provided tactical operational assistance to member countries.

It said preliminary investigations led to a series of coordinated actions by national authorities, including raids on key locations and the disruption of malicious cyber activities.

This, it said, led to the seizure of 212 electronic devices and servers.

INTERPOL said the biggest success was recorded in Macau, China, where law enforcement identified more than 33,000 phishing and fraudulent websites, related to fake casinos and critical infrastructure, such as official bank, government and payment service sites.

It noted that victims were defrauded by topping up their accounts via the fraudulent sites or by having their personal information and credit card details stolen.

In Togo, police arrested 10 suspects operating a fraud ring from a residential area.

Some of the suspects specialised in technical crimes such as hacking social media accounts, while others carried out social engineering schemes including romance scams and sextortion.

“After gaining access to an account, the criminals contacted the victim’s online contacts, impersonating the account holder to build fake romantic relationships or deceive friends and family members.

“Their ultimate goal was to persuade these secondary victims to make money transfers,” the statement reads in part.

In Bangladesh, police arrested 40 suspects and seized 134 electronic devices related to a large range of cybercrime schemes, including loan and job scams, identify theft or credit card fraud.

INTERPOL’s Director of the Cybercrime Directorate, Neal Jetton said, “Cybercrime in 2026 is more sophisticated and destructive than ever before, but Operation Synergia III stands as a powerful testament to what global cooperation can achieve. INTERPOL remains at the forefront of this fight, uniting law enforcement agencies and private sector experts to dismantle criminal networks, disrupt emerging threats and protect victims around the world.”

According to the statement, several investigations are still ongoing in participating countries.

INTERPOL noted that during Operation Synergia III, it worked closely with its partners, Group-IB, Trend Micro and S2W, to track illegal cyber activities and identify malicious servers.

Participating countries and territories include Angola, Argentina, Austria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana Brazil, Brunei, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Colombia, Democratic Rep of Congo, Eritrea, Eswatini, France, Gambia, Georgia, Greece, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, and Guyana.

Others are Honduras, Iceland, India, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liechtenstein, Macao (China), Madagascar, Malaysia, Maldives, Moldova, Mongolia, Niger, Nigeria, North Macedonia, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Paraguay, Philippines, Poland, and Qatar.

Also on the list are Singapore, South Africa, South Sudan, Spain, Sri Lanka, Switzerland, Tanzania, Togo, Türkiye, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, Venezuela, Zambia, Zimbabwe. The Sun)

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