Encrypted chats expose criminal network
Encrypted chats from the infamous Sky ECC platform exposed members of a $90 million Kosovan crime network.
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Encrypted chats from the infamous Sky ECC platform exposed members of a $90 million Kosovan crime network.
- Encrypted Sky ECC chats helped expose a Kosovan crime network linked to drug trafficking, fake IDs, illegal weapons, and money laundering.
- Authorities investigated around 40 suspects during a three-year probe that relied on large volumes of intelligence from the defunct encrypted messaging platform.
- Sky ECC was used by criminal groups worldwide because it offered anonymity, encrypted messages, remote deletion, and a panic function on specially loaded devices.
- The investigation led to the arrest of five key members and gave authorities a clearer view of the gang’s infrastructure and drug trafficking money flows.
- Agencies seized 80 million euros, about $92 million, while a legal challenge against Europol and Eurojust over data handling was dismissed.
Key Takeaways by nexos.ai, reviewed by Cybernews staff.
Roughly 40 suspects have been investigated as a result of a three-year-long investigation where authorities analyzed “large volumes of intelligence” from a platform favored by criminal gangs.
The subscription encrypted messaging platform Sky ECC, once operated by Canadian parent company Sky Global, was used by criminal enterprises worldwide.
Sky ECC offered features such as confidential message, photo, and voice message sharing, user anonymity, and manipulation detection, along with other safety features like remote deletion and a panic function.
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While not publicly available, the platform was preloaded on certain devices, which criminals gave to other criminals.
Sky ECC was eventually shut down in 2021 following an investigation by European authorities, which is how Europol got a hold of this data.
While the platform is defunct, there are hundreds of millions of encrypted messages available, which “contain valuable insights into the structure, operations, and international links of criminal networks,” according to Europol.
That turned out to be true when encrypted messages revealed a Kosovar-based criminal network, responsible for various crimes, including drug trafficking, using fake IDs, possession of illegal weapons, and money laundering.
Authorities arrested five key members of the group by “combining intelligence with operational information gathered across multiple countries.”
This gave authorities a better understanding of the gang’s infrastructure and financial flows linked to drug trafficking.
Along with the arrests, agencies seized 80 million euros ($92 million).
Europol sued during years-long investigation
Throughout the 3-year investigation, a lawsuit was filed against Europol and another European agency, Eurojust, on behalf of a person only known as BW.
The private complainant claimed that the EU’s investigation of Sky ECC violated data protection laws, as the way Europol and Eurojust processed the data was unlawful.
Along with this claim, BW asserted that these agencies lacked legal rights under EU law and asked the Court to deem the agencies’ acts illegal.
This would mean that the entire investigation would be void and all progress would be erased (annulled). BW also asked for compensation.
However, this didn’t happen as the Court didn’t cancel the agencies’ actions, and BW’s actions were dismissed.
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