Silk Road Dark Net Raid Puts 400+ Sites Out Of Commission

This week a joint police operation in Europe took down more than 400 websites suspected of illegal activity in the Dark Net. This operation had to be run entirely in secret and had to take place in many places at once. Once one site is taken down, others are warned, and they unplug. Simultaneous takedown is the only way this sort of operation is able to be run – so said Troels Oerting, head of Europol's European cybercrime centre. This hit took down not only dark net sites, but services as well.

Silk Road 2.0 – the second version of an illegal trading network believed to have been taken down several years ago, has also been targeted as part of this raid. One suspect by the name of B.Benthall is in custody.

This joint operation of 16 European countries and the United States also oversaw 17 additional arrests. Arrests were made in Cleethorpes, Liverpool, and New Waltham England, as well as Aberdovey Whales.

Every one of those arrested were interviewed and bailed.

According to Oerting, "Today we have demonstrated that, together, we are able to efficiently remove vital criminal infrastructures that are supporting serious organized crime."

Oerting continued, speaking with the BBC, "And we are not 'just' removing these services from the open internet; this time we have also hit services on the dark net using Tor where, for a long time, criminals have considered themselves beyond reach."