A coordinated international crackdown has frozen more than $12 million in suspected criminal proceeds and uncovered upwards of $45 million in crypto fraud linked to a sprawling approval-phishing network that victimized over 20,000 people, the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA) says.
The March operation, dubbed Operation Atlantic, brought together the NCA, the US Secret Service, the Ontario Provincial Police and the Ontario Securities Commission. Private-sector partners — including Binance’s Special Investigations team — also worked alongside investigators to spot victims and trace suspicious transactions in real time.
What investigators were targeting: approval-phishing scams. Rather than tricking users into sending crypto directly to a thief, attackers persuade victims to sign a malicious “approval” or smart-contract permission that later allows scammers to withdraw assets from the wallet. Because victims themselves unknowingly authorize the action, these scams can be harder to detect and are considered among the most damaging frauds affecting crypto users.
Operation Atlantic identified victims across the UK, US and Canada; one UK victim reportedly lost more than £52,000. Private firms helped law enforcement act while funds were still traceable, providing live account screening and scam intelligence during the sweep. Binance said its team supported the London effort, located active scam websites and passed on information useful for asset-seizure work — but stressed that no funds were frozen on Binance accounts, suggesting the seized proceeds were held off-exchange when the operation occurred.
The NCA is now conducting further analysis of the intelligence gathered during the crackdown. Authorities also warned victims to beware of “recovery” scams, where criminals reappear under new names promising to retrieve stolen crypto in exchange for fees.
(Featured image: Unsplash; chart: TradingView)
Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news
