The Matrix has fallen: what is it about and why it was dangerous

MatrixThis was the name of a dangerous encrypted network that served as a communication channel for criminal companies that supported illegal activities such as drug trafficking, weapons trafficking and money laundering.

Messages on the platform indicate cross-border criminal cooperation, with users mainly located in southern Europe and speaking 33 languages. The service offered an ecosystem of applications, including encrypted messaging, video calling, transaction tracking, and anonymous browsing. Devices with pre-installed Matrix software were sold exclusively to verified individuals at prices ranging from 1,300 to 1,600 euros for a six-month subscription.

And now the authorities of the Netherlands and France, with the support of Europol and Eurojust, have just seized and dismantled the service.

During the operation, law enforcement intercepted and analyzed more than 2.3 million communications, gaining unprecedented insight into global criminal activity. The platform, considered to be the successor to EncroChat, Sky ECC and ANOM, was seized after an intensive investigation that lasted several years.

Its infrastructure was primarily focused on France and Germany, with operations run from Spain by a 52-year-old Lithuanian citizen identified as the platform’s owner. A 30-year-old Dutch suspect was arrested along with him on suspicion of involvement both in the operation of the service and in the international cocaine trade. Both arrests were made in Marbella (Spain) at the request of Dutch authorities.

Law enforcement carried out six searches in Spain, seizing more than €15 million in assets, as well as €145,000 in cash, €500,000 in cryptocurrency, 970 devices and several vehicles. At the same time, six more searches were carried out in Lithuania.