Europol 'unlocks' encrypted Sky ECC chat service to make arrests

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Europol 'unlocks' encrypted Sky ECC chat service to make arrests

 

Image: Sky ECC

 

European law enforcement authorities have made a large number of arrests after a joint operation involving the monitoring of organized crime communication channels after "unlocking" Sky ECC chat's encryption.

 

Sky ECC is advertised as a secure messaging platform used by around 170,000 individuals worldwide. The service's US, Canadian, and European servers are being used to exchange over three million messages each day.

 

More than 20 percent of Sky ECC's userbase is formed of customers based in Belgium and the Netherlands.

"By successfully unlocking the encryption of Sky ECC, the information acquired will provide insights into criminal activities in various EU Member States and beyond and will assist in expanding investigations and solving serious and cross-border organized crime for the coming months, possibly years," Europol said in a press release published today.

Sky ECC chat encryption cracked

The investigation started after Belgium police seized mobile phones from criminals who used Sky ECC. After "unlocking" the chat platform's encryption, investigators have been able to monitor communications between roughly 70,000 Sky ECC users.

 

"By successfully unlocking the encryption of Sky ECC," Belgium, France, and Netherlands investigators were able to gain "invaluable insights" into hundreds of millions of messages sent by criminals part of large-scale organized crime groups (OCGs) over the encrypted communication service.

 

"The continuous monitoring of the illegal Sky ECC communication service tool by investigators in the three countries involved has provided invaluable insights into hundreds of millions of messages exchanged between criminals," Europol added.

 

"This has resulted in the collection of crucial information on over a hundred of planned large-scale criminal operations, preventing potential life threatening situations and possible victims.

House searches and seizures, as well as numerous arrests, were made in Belgium and the Netherlands Wednesday, on March 9, 2021.

 

"The operation is an essential part of the continuous effort of judiciary and law enforcement in the EU and third countries to disrupt the illegal use of encrypted communications," Europol addd.

 

#Breaking
MAJOR INTERVENTIONS TO BLOCK ENCRYPTED COMMUNICATIONS OF CRIMINAL NETWORKS:#Europol and @Eurojust have supported in a major international operation, disrupting #SkyECC, an encrypted network used by criminals. Read more: https://t.co/NeWio8bICP

— Europol (@Europol) March 10, 2021

One year ago, European law enforcement agencies also arrested hundreds of suspects in several countries after successfully cracking the EncroChat communication platform. 

EncroChat phones running Android OS and the EncroChat OS were used by international criminal networks to communicate over encrypted channels.

Many EncroChat have switched to the Sky ECC platform after the former was taken down, according to Europol.

Sky ECC denies encryption cracking "allegations"

"SKY ECC platform remains secure and no authorized SKY ECC device has been hacked," a notice on Sky ECC's site reads.

 

"On March 8, 2021, SKY ECC received notification of several articles published in Belgium and the Netherlands alleging that Belgian and/or Dutch authorities have cracked or hacked SKY ECC encrypted communication software. SKY ECC maintains, after thorough investigation, that all such allegations are false."

 

Sky ECC told BleepingComputer Tuesday that statements of the platform's encryption being cracked are false. According to the company, the hacked software was running on cloned devices running a fake phishing application designed to impersonate the Sky ECC app.

 

Sky ECC added that no law enforcement or judicial authority reached out regarding this investigation and "firmly denies any allegation that it is the 'platform of choice for criminals'."

 

 

Source: Europol 'unlocks' encrypted Sky ECC chat service to make arrests

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Sky ECC denies police have ‘cracked’ encrypted messaging platform

Europol, however, says arrests have been made based on monitoring conversation flows.

 

Sky ECC has denied that the encrypted messaging platform has been compromised by European law enforcement. 

 

Sky ECC advertises itself as a secure, end-to-end encrypted service and the "most secure messaging platform you can buy." The vendor offers a subscription and either Android and iOS handsets that are paid for in Bitcoin (BTC) and shipped worldwide. 

 

According to Europol, there are approximately 170,000 Sky ECC users and roughly three million messages are sent via the platform on a daily basis. In total, over 20% of the Sky ECC user base is said to be located in Belgium and the Netherlands. 

 

On March 10, Europol announced that together with various law enforcement agencies in Belgium, France, and the Netherlands, it has been possible to "unlock the encryption" of Sky ECC. 

The law enforcement agency said that since roughly mid-February, chat sessions established between approximately 70,000 users have been monitored, leading to a "large number of arrests" in a crackdown on March 9. House searches and seizures took place across Belgium and the Netherlands and the mobile phones of suspects were seized.

"The continuous monitoring of the illegal Sky ECC communication service tool by investigators in the three countries involved has provided invaluable insights into hundreds of millions of messages exchanged between criminals," Europol says. "This has resulted in the collection of crucial information on over a hundred planned large-scale criminal operations, preventing potential life-threatening situations and possible victims."

 

In July 2020, the UK's National Crime Agency (NCA) seized the servers of EncroChat, an encrypted platform that the NCA says was used to coordinate criminal activity. 

 

Over 700 arrests were made at the time. According to Europol, following the seizure, many EncroChat users then moved over to Sky ECC. 

 

Sky ECC has pushed back against Europol's claims, referring to a Dutch police press release that is accompanied by a photo allegedly showing the app in use on a mobile device. 

 

The vendor claims that the image -- which appears to relate to a device advertised on the skyecc.eu domain, rather than .com -- is the work of an "imposter" and a "disgruntled" former reseller. 

 

Sky ECC says that the "crack or hack" of its encrypted communication software are "false allegations." 

 

Furthermore, Sky ECC CEO Jean-François Eap said in a statement that the company has not been contacted by the authorities "in connection with any investigations currently being reported," and "the confusing references to Sky ECC instead of skyecc.eu are very damaging."

"We know that someone has been passing themselves off as an official reseller of Sky ECC for some time and we have been trying to shut it down through legal channels for almost two years," Eap commented.

 

Instead, the vendor claims a malicious phishing application is being distributed under the Sky ECC name, with the implication being that law enforcement has been able to monitor messages sent via the unauthorized app, rather than the official version. Sky ECC claims this app has been illegally created, modified, and side-loaded onto devices.  

 

However, the company also noted "temporary interruptions in connection with its servers" on March 8.

"All Sky ECC phones purchased directly from Sky ECC or its authorized distributors remain secure," the vendor added. "We continue to stand by our promise of secure devices, secure networks and secure communications."

 

 

Source: Sky ECC denies police have ‘cracked’ encrypted messaging platform