Europol - Newsroom

• Europol and international partners disrupt ‘SocksEscort’ proxy service

  On 11 March 2026, Europol in collaboration with law enforcement agencies from Austria, France, the Netherlands, and the United States, alongside Eurojust, executed Operation Lightning. This coordinated effort targeted the malicious proxy service ‘SocksEscort’, which allegedly compromised over 369 000 routers and Internet of Things devices in 163 countries, and offered ‘SocksEscort’ customers over 35 000 proxies in recent years.

• Europol leads international operation against environmental crime and waste trafficking

  Europol has successfully coordinated a large-scale operation targeting organised crime networks involved in waste and pollution crime. The global operation, code-named ‘Custos Viridis’, took place between January and December 2025 on five continents, with Europol working alongside partners from 71 countries and numerous international organisations.

• European Day of Remembrance for Victims of Terrorism

  Today, as we mark the 22nd European Remembrance Day for Victims of Terrorism, we honour those who lost their lives and reflect on the impact of terrorism on our communities. This year, in particular, we commemorate the 10th anniversary of the attacks in Brussels, which claimed 32 lives and left more than 300 people injured. To acknowledge this solemn occasion, Catherine De Bolle, Europol's Executive Director, shares her account of the events:

• From a small Swedish town to a global crime network: international operation strikes top-tier organised crime

  Forensic analysis revealed not one organised crime group, but multiple interconnected networks involved in large-scale drug trafficking and money laundering. They were bound together by a web of companies and other structures.Most of the key targets identified had previously been unknown to law enforcement. The true scale and structure of the criminal ecosystem only emerged once investigators unlocked the data...

• 12 members of money laundering scheme exploiting Ukrainian women arrested in Spain

  An international operation in Spain targeting a money laundering scheme resulted in the arrest of 12 suspects. The disrupted criminal network systematically exploited vulnerable Ukrainian women to open bank accounts, which were used in gaming platforms and to transfer illicit profits. Authorities estimate that the criminal organisation made a profit of EUR 4.75 million using this method. Spanish authorities, in...