In a significant stride against cybercrime, INTERPOL spearheaded “Operation Red Card,” a collaborative law enforcement initiative that led to the arrest of more than 300 individuals implicated in various cyber offenses across Africa. Conducted between November 2024 and February 2025, the operation targeted transnational criminal networks engaged in mobile banking fraud, investment scams, and the exploitation of messaging applications.
Collaborative Efforts Across Nations
The operation saw the participation of law enforcement agencies from seven African countries: Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Togo, and Zambia. These agencies coordinated their efforts through INTERPOL’s African Joint Operation against Cybercrime (AFJOC), aiming to dismantle cybercriminal syndicates operating across borders.
Seizure of Evidence and Impact on Victims
Authorities confiscated 1,842 devices containing evidence of malicious activities that affected over 5,000 individuals across the continent. This substantial seizure underscores the extensive reach and impact of cybercriminal operations in the region.
Notable Arrests and Criminal Activities
– Nigeria: Law enforcement arrested 130 individuals, including 113 foreign nationals, involved in sophisticated investment scams. These perpetrators converted illicit proceeds into digital assets to obscure their activities.
– Zambia: Authorities apprehended 14 members of a hacking syndicate that deployed malware through malicious links. This group gained control over victims’ messaging accounts and banking applications via a multistage attack vector.
– Rwanda: Police arrested 45 criminals who executed social engineering attacks, resulting in losses exceeding $305,000 in 2024 alone. Their tactics included impersonating telecommunications employees and creating fake jackpot schemes to extract sensitive information from victims’ mobile banking accounts.
– South Africa: Authorities dismantled a SIM box fraud operation, arresting 40 individuals and seizing over 1,000 SIM cards and 53 computer systems. This infrastructure facilitated the rerouting of international calls as local ones, enabling large-scale SMS phishing campaigns.
Role of Private Sector and International Cooperation
Kaspersky’s threat intelligence team played a pivotal role by providing crucial analysis of malicious Android applications targeting African users. They supplied detailed YARA rules that helped identify specific malware families, enhancing the effectiveness of the operation.
Neal Jetton, INTERPOL’s Director of the Cybercrime Directorate, emphasized the significance of international collaboration:
“The success of Operation Red Card demonstrates the power of international cooperation in combating cybercrime, which knows no borders and can have devastating effects on individuals and communities.”
Yuliya Shlychkova, Vice President of Global Public Affairs at Kaspersky, highlighted the necessity of joint efforts:
“The evolving threat landscape in Africa requires multi-stakeholder dialogue and joint efforts of public and private organizations. Red Card showcases how private sector expertise coupled with law enforcement investigative capacities can foster a more cyber-resilient environment.”
Building on Previous Collaborations
This operation builds on Kaspersky’s previous collaborations with INTERPOL, including two editions of Africa Cyber Surge operations and recent joint action with AFRIPOL. The partnership continues to focus on sharing threat intelligence data feeds, indicators of compromise (IoCs), and information on advanced persistent threats (APTs) to combat cybercrime trends across the African continent.
Conclusion
Operation Red Card marks a significant milestone in the fight against cybercrime in Africa. The coordinated efforts of multiple nations, supported by private sector expertise, have led to the dismantling of several cybercriminal networks, the arrest of key perpetrators, and the seizure of critical evidence. This operation underscores the importance of international cooperation and the need for continuous vigilance to protect individuals and communities from the evolving threats posed by cybercriminals.
