Dozens of global arrests were made after Australian police busted the Ghost cybercrime app.
In Australia, police made 38 arrests during raids, while additional suspects were also apprehended in Canada, Sweden, Ireland, and Italy.
- Ghost, an encrypted communications app designed for criminals, has been infiltrated by Australian police.
- The alleged administrator of the app, Jay Je Yoon Jung, was charged with supporting a criminal organization and profiting from crime in a Sydney court.
- In Australia, police arrested 38 suspects in raids across four states. Additionally, there were arrests made in Canada, Sweden, Ireland, and Italy.
On Wednesday, Australian police announced that they had successfully infiltrated Ghost, a globally used encrypted communication app designed for criminals, resulting in multiple arrests.
On Wednesday, Jay Je Yoon Jung, 32, the alleged administrator of the app, appeared in a Sydney court on charges of supporting a criminal organization and benefiting from proceeds of crime.
Until his case is heard in November, Jung will remain in custody without entering a plea or applying for bail.
In recent days, Australian police arrested 38 suspects in raids across four states, while law enforcement agencies in Canada, Sweden, Ireland, and Italy also made arrests, as stated by Australian Federal Police Deputy Commissioner Ian McCartney.
McCartney claimed that hundreds of criminals, including members of Italian organized crime, motorcycle gangs, Middle Eastern organized crime, and Korean organized crime, have utilized Ghost in Australia and overseas to smuggle illegal drugs and issue murder orders.
Since March, Assistant Commissioner Kirsty Schofield stated that the Australian police had successfully prevented 50 individuals from being harmed, kidnapped or killed by monitoring 125,000 messages and 120 video calls.
Police allege the Jung developed the app specifically for criminal use in 2017.
Australia joined a Europol-led global taskforce targeting Ghost in 2022.
The National Cyber Command Technical Department of France's Home Affairs Ministry, led by Col. Florian Manet, provided technical resources to the Australian police task force over several years to help decrypt communications.
McCartney stated that the French had given Australian police an opportunity to decrypt Ghost communications.
McCartney stated that Australian police technicians frequently modified software updates issued by the administrator.
McCartney stated that we infected the devices, allowing us to access content on Australian devices. He also mentioned that the suspected administrator resided in his parents' Sydney home and had no criminal record.
Jung was arrested at his home on Tuesday.
Criminals worldwide received specialized handsets through a network of resellers, according to police reports on Jung's activities.
The smartphones were sold for $1,590, along with a six-month subscription to Ghost and tech support.
world
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