Interpol's Operation Serengeti III arrested 1,462 suspects across 21 countries, dismantling 10,909 malicious networks and recovering over $105 million in cybercrime.
Global operation targets cybercrime networks
Interpol’s Operation Serengeti III led to the arrest of 1,462 suspects across 21 countries and the dismantling of 10,909 malicious networks. The operation, which ran for two months until August 31, involved police from 20 African countries and the United States, supported by cybersecurity firms like Kaspersky and Fortinet.Cybercrime networks uncovered
Investigators found an organized scam economy with fraudsters in Uganda using pre-written scripts to target retirees in Asia, convincing them to invest in fake trading platforms. In Uganda alone, 365 foreign nationals were arrested, and two transnational networks involved in investment and pension fraud were dismantled.Financial impact of cybercrime
More than 105 million dollars was recovered during the operation, while 65,929 identified victims lost over 385 million dollars. In Nigeria, a suspect promoted an investment fraud on messaging platforms, and investigators traced over 2.4 million dollars in suspicious funds, largely in cryptocurrencies.Arrests and seizures in multiple countries
Nine people were arrested in Angola for operating illegal cryptocurrency mining centers, where police seized over 2,000 machines and six power transformation units worth more than one million dollars. In Tanzania, police closed a malicious loan application, while Gabonese police shut down a vehicle import fraud network on social media.Operation Serengeti 2.0 results
A similar operation in 2025, called Operation Serengeti 2.0, led to 1,209 arrests and the recovery of 97.4 million dollars. Investigators began with servers and domain names before tracing the fraudsters. Jacomo Piccolini of Team Cymru noted that criminals rely on infrastructure, which provides opportunities to track them down.Phishing and business email compromise
Nigerian police arrested a man suspected of running a large phishing and business email compromise (BEC) operation, where fraudsters impersonate managers or suppliers to request transfers. Investigators recovered a luxury vehicle believed to be purchased with the proceeds of the fraud.AI’s role in cybercrime
According to an August cyber threat assessment by Interpol, scammers in Africa use AI in 55% of reported cybercrimes. AI is used to write highly credible BEC emails targeting victims in Europe and North America. Neal Jetton of Interpol warned that AI automates every step of a cyberattack, including identification, phishing, extortion, and detection evasion.Rising transfer fraud in France
In France, transfer fraud increased by 170% in 2025 across all demographics, according to the annual report from Cybermalveillance.gouv.fr. Scammers now exploit electronic invoicing and payroll systems. The initiative advises people to verify urgent transfer requests by calling known contacts instead of using numbers provided in messages.Ongoing investigations
Several investigations from Serengeti III are still ongoing, with police continuing to search for other suspects and the trail of misappropriated funds.
