A coordinated international operation against Genesis Market, a criminal online marketplace that sold packages of account access credentials including user names and passwords for email, bank accounts, and social media, was taken down according to the Justice Department.
The user names and passwords had been stolen from malware-infected computers around the world.
This operation, called Operation Cookie Monster, helped law enforcement seize 11 domain names used to support Genesis Market’s infrastructure pursuant to a warrant authorized by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin.
“Working across 45 of our FBI Field Offices and alongside our international partners, the Justice Department has launched an unprecedented takedown of a major criminal marketplace that enabled cybercriminals to victimize individuals, businesses and governments around the world,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland on Wednesday. “Our seizure of Genesis Market should serve as a warning to cybercriminals who operate or use these criminal marketplaces: the Justice Department and our international partners will shut down your illegal activities, find you, and bring you to justice.”
Since 2018, Genesis Market has offered access to data stolen from more than 1.5 million compromised computers around the world containing more than 80 million account access credentials. Account access credentials advertised for sale on Genesis Market included those connected to the financial sector, critical infrastructure, and federal, state and local government agencies.
Genesis Market was also one of the most prolific initial access brokers in the cybercrime world, according to the Justice Department. IABs attract criminals looking to easily infiltrate a victim’s computer system. Genesis Market offered for sale the type of access sought by ransomware actors to attack computer networks in the U.S. and around the world, and published private-sector reports indicate that they indeed were used by ransomware actors to attack such systems.
“The Department of Justice and its partners dismantled the Genesis Market and arrested many of its users around the world,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco. “Genesis falsely promised a new age of anonymity and impunity, but in the end only provided a new way for the Department to identify, locate, and arrest on-line criminals. Each takedown is yet another blow to the cybercrime ecosystem.”
Federal law enforcement has worked to identify prolific users of Genesis Market who purchased and used stolen access credentials to commit fraud and other cybercrimes. This effort resulted in hundreds of leads being sent to FBI field offices throughout the United States, as well as to foreign law enforcement partners.
“The operation being announced today is the direct result of the hard work, dedication and exceptional collaborative efforts of the FBI and its partners around the globe,” said U.S. Attorney Gregory J. Haanstad for the Eastern District of Wisconsin. “Along with investigative partners and our Justice Department colleagues, my office remains committed to using all available tools to protect individuals from cybercriminals like those who operate these types of online marketplaces.”
The Justice Department said potential victims can visit HaveIBeenPwned.com to see whether their credentials were compromised by Genesis Market so that they can know whether to change or modify passwords and other authentication credentials that may have been compromised.
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Crystal Graham
