Europol shut down illegal booter services across 21 countries
Authorities disrupted illegal cyberattack services, seizing domains and exposing millions of user accounts linked to online DDoS platforms.
A major international crackdown led by Europol has targeted more than 75,000 users involved in distributed denial-of-service (DDoS)-for-hire activity. The coordinated Operation PowerOFF brought together 21 countries in a global effort to dismantle cyberattack infrastructure.
Authorities issued tens of thousands of warning messages, carried out arrests, executed search warrants, and seized dozens of domains linked to illegal booter platforms.
The operation also disrupted technical systems used to facilitate attacks, including servers and databases that enabled users to target online services and websites.
Analysis of seized data provided access to millions of user accounts, strengthening ongoing investigations across participating jurisdictions. Europol supported the operation through intelligence analysis, forensic work, and coordination between national agencies, helping identify and track those involved.
Alongside enforcement, the initiative has shifted towards prevention, including awareness campaigns, search engine interventions, and blockchain-based warnings.
Officials stress that DDoS-for-hire services remain widely accessible but are illegal, with users ranging from inexperienced actors to more organised cybercriminals driven by financial or ideological motives.
By targeting both infrastructure and users, authorities reduce the accessibility of tools that enable low-skill attackers to cause significant disruption to online services. Such actions strengthen cyber resilience and reflect a shift towards more proactive, internationally coordinated responses to digital threats.
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