German Police & Europol Shut Down “Manson Market” and Related Fake Online Shops
Published on December 6, 2024
- “Mansion Market” was used to sell information and data obtained via phishing operations.
- Two individuals were arrested, believed to have been operating the crime marketplace.
- Law enforcement teams have seized 50 servers and 200+ terabytes of digital evidence.
A large-scale operation led by the Hanover Police Department (Polizedirektion Hanover) and the Verden Public Prosecutor’s Office (Staatsanwaltschaft Verden) resulted in two arrests and the shutdown of “Manson Market,” a cybercrime marketplace. The operation, supported by Europol, began in the autumn of 2022 following reports of fraudulent phone calls.
Per those initial reports, malicious actors impersonated bank employees to extract sensitive data from victims, such as addresses and security numbers. However, the stolen data was later traced back to Manson Market, which served as the central hub for the trade of illegally obtained information.
Europol notes that Manson Market had thousands of users who were able to purchase and obtain stolen information by region and account balance. Furthermore, a network of fake websites designed to collect payment information through phishing was also uncovered. This data (more than 63,000 records) was sold through Manson Market.
On December 4, coordinated actions took place. Searches were conducted in Germany and Austria. Law enforcement seized over 50 servers and over 200 terabytes of data in Germany, Finland, the Netherlands, and Norway.
Manson Market’s domain (mansion-market[.]pw) was also seized, and the site has been taken down. Right now, a prominent “This Website Has Been Sized” banner is displayed instead, with additional text explaining that all of the website’s data has been obtained. That said, we can expect more information on the website’s users to surface.
The operation also saw two main suspects, a 27-year-old and a 37-year-old, arrested in Germany and Austria. They are currently in pre-trial detention.
Earlier this week, Germany’s federal police shut down “Crimenetwork,” the largest German-language crime marketplace, which has been operating since 2012. It is believed that Crimenetwork had 100,000 users and 100+ registered resellers and was used to sell stolen data, drugs, and forged documents.
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