iscover
Share this article on:
Powered by
MOMENTUM
MEDIA
The Australian Federal Police has arrested a West Australian man over links to the popular dark web forum Genesis Market.
The man, aged 35, was arrested on 20 April for unrelated offences and on 12 May was charged with two counts of possessing or controlling data with intent to commit a computer offence and two counts of gaining a benefit by fraud.
He is expected to face court today (30 June).
Genesis Market was taken down on 6 April in an international operation called Operation Cookie Monster, which led to the arrests of over 100 people linked to the market, including 10 in Australia. The Australian arm of the operation was called Operation Zinger and involved the AFP, NSW Police Force, Victoria Police, Queensland Police Service and Western Australia Police Force.
The international operation was led by the FBI.
At the time the market was finally taken down, Genesis Market was selling access to over 1.5 million compromised machines, with dozens of accounts and their credentials on each.
The arrested man was identified in 2020, and further investigations revealed an already outstanding warrant for his arrest and that the individual had been on the run for over a year.
The electronic devices he was using when first arrested were found to have been used to access Genesis Market, with the alleged intent to commit ID fraud.
AFP Sergeant Peter Gelme has said that Operation Zinger remains ongoing.
“Genesis Market was only used to facilitate cyber crime and fraud. There was no legitimate reason to purchase stolen information from this marketplace,” SGT Gelme said in an announcement.
“The charges against this man should serve as a warning to any Australian users of Genesis Market. Just because we didn’t arrest you during the initial resolution doesn’t mean we are not compiling evidence of criminal offences and won’t be paying you a visit.”
David Hollingworth has been writing about technology for over 20 years, and has worked for a range of print and online titles in his career. He is enjoying getting to grips with cyber security, especially when it lets him talk about Lego.
Be the first to hear the latest developments in the cyber industry.
