NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! EXCLUSIVE: A 60-day FBI operation targeting cybercriminals, online fraud and illicit digital infrastructure resulted in numerous arrests and disrupted vast global criminal networks that preyed on Americans and laundered millions in profits, Fox News Digital has learned. Operation Riptide was launched in June to combat cybercrime, which defrauded Americans of more than $20 billion last year, according to the FBI. With the help of international authorities, the office seized millions in illegal cryptocurrency and other funds while dismantling cyber networks around the world. GLOBAL PARTNERS ARE JOINING THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION AND THIS FBI TO RUPT THE SCAM EMPIRES FOREVER Illustration of cybercrime and hacking activity with a laptop displaying a pirate symbol while a hooded person uses a digital tablet in a dark environment in Paris, France, on April 28, 2026. (Hans Lucas/AFP via Getty Images) “Operation Riptide was the FBI’s “historic 60-day campaign targeting cybercriminals preying on Americans here at home and around the world,” FBI Director Kash Patel told Fox News Digital. “We are pursuing this criminal enterprise more aggressively than ever.” Patel attributed the initiative’s success to several factors, including the bureau’s artificial intelligence technology, increased intelligence sharing and aggressive coordination with authorities abroad. these criminal networks no matter where they operate,” Patel said. Among the cases stemming from the operation was the arrest of a member of the pro-Russia hacktivist group Cyber Army of Russia Reborn, as well as the seizure of a cloud computing account used by subsidiaries of the Huione Group, a Cambodia-based corporate conglomerate. FBI Director Kash Patel arrives to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on September 16, 2025. in Washington, DC (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) DOJ CHARGES 3 RUSSIANS OVER ALLEGED $63 MILLION CYBER CRIME SCHEME TARGETING AMERICANS Subsidiaries allegedly helped individuals and organizations transfer illicit proceeds from cryptocurrency investment frauds, cyber scams and other blockchain crimes, facilitating undetected conversions to the banking sector legitimate. In another major operation, law enforcement coordinated with Google and Black Lotus Labs to execute a technical takedown of Outsider, a Chinese phishing-as-a-service platform. Outsider provided cybercriminals with hosting infrastructure and “phishing kits” used to target U.S. citizens, businesses and victims in at least 54 other countries, the FBI said.[EMBARGO] META LEADS LARGEST ANTI-SCAFT OPERATION WITH THE FBI AND DOJ, RESULTING IN 63 ARRESTS FBI Director Kash Patel said the bureau holds accountable anyone involved in cybercrime networks. (Getty Images) In addition to the new arrests, several other cybercrime cases reached important legal milestones. Eight people were convicted of participating in an international cargo theft conspiracy that affected the security of the US supply chain, while five Ghanaian nationals were charged with allegedly operating romance fraud schemes targeting Americans online. Additionally, two people were recently sentenced to 6.5 years in prison for their involvement in a nationwide ATM jackpotting scheme that used Ploutus malware to rob millions of ATMs across the United States. CARGO THEFT HITTS EVERYTHING FROM LEGO TO TEQUILA. WE NEED THE SENATE TO HELP STOP HIM In another case, Barry Augustinsky was convicted of running a multi-year VoIP-based fraud scheme targeting primarily elderly Americans, laundering the proceeds, and providing access to false credit reports to facilitate the scheme. “We executed coordinated law enforcement actions across the country and leveraged our reach around the world to disrupt these criminal networks, impose consequences, and protect the American people from predatory cyber actors,” said Heith Janke, FBI Assistant Director of Criminal Investigation. Division. NEW BANK SCAM LAWS COULD STOP SUSPICIOUS PAYMENTS Scott Augenbaum, a retired FBI agent specializing in cybercrime, said modern tools have lowered the bar for bad actors. “Artificial intelligence is improving the ability of cybercriminals to trick people,” Augenbaum told Fox News Digital. “Today you’ll see an email that has no grammatical errors. We used to tell people that if the email had very bad grammar, it’s a scam. That red flag doesn’t work anymore. Cybercriminals can create fake websites, use voice cloning, and take advantage of many new tools.” Brett Leatherman, deputy director of the FBI’s Cyber Division, emphasized that the bureau will maintain its push against international networks. CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP “Cybercriminals rely on borders, anonymity and rented infrastructure to stay out of their reach, and for 60 days, the FBI and our partners took those advantages away,” Leatherman said. “Arrests, extraditions, infrastructure takedowns and seizures imposed costs on a different point in the criminal ecosystem. Our partners made it possible, and the pressure we generated doesn’t stop there.”
