The FBI has successfully shut down Genesis Market, a notorious hacking destination, resulting in the arrest of dozens of individuals connected to the site. The marketplace, founded in 2018, sold access to stolen passwords, cookies, and digital fingerprints for user login sessions, allowing hackers to bypass two-factor authentication and other safeguards on online accounts.
The information was sold through “bots,” large groups of computers already infected with malware that could extract passwords and other data to hijack login sessions.
Genesis Market also offered a browser plugin that could mimic victim computers ensnared in any of the sold bots, making it a valuable resource for cybercriminals seeking to defraud victims.
Law enforcement in 17 countries have made 119 arrests, and 208 property searches have been carried out in connection with the site’s demise. In the UK alone, police arrested 24 people for their ties to Genesis.
The marketplace hosted approximately 80 million credentials and digital fingerprints stolen from over two million people, making it a go-to service for cybercriminals. Senior FBI and Justice Department officials revealed that law enforcement identified and copied the backend servers for Genesis Market’s main site, which contain stolen passwords and session cookies from victims, along with data on customers of the infamous hacking site.
This successful takedown of Genesis Market is a significant victory in the fight against cybercrime. The marketplace’s access to stolen data, along with the tools and resources it offered, allowed hackers to bypass security measures and gain unauthorized access to online accounts.
With the arrest of dozens of individuals connected to the site and the seizure of its servers, law enforcement has disrupted a valuable resource for cybercriminals and made it more difficult for them to carry out their illicit activities.
However, the battle against cybercrime is ongoing, and authorities will need to remain vigilant to prevent new threats from emerging.
