A yearlong Europol-coordinated operation dubbed “Challenge Compass” has led to 30 arrests and 179 suspects being tied to “The Com,” an internet cybercrime collective that targets kids and youngsters.
In a press launch issued on Thursday, Europol stated that investigators recognized 62 victims and instantly safeguarded 4 of them from the group’s assaults.
Launched in January 2025 and led by Europol’s European Counter Terrorism Centre, the Challenge Compass joint motion has introduced collectively regulation enforcement businesses from 28 international locations to fight The Com (quick for Neighborhood).
“These networks intentionally goal kids within the digital areas the place they really feel most comfy,” stated Anna Sjöberg, the top of Europol’s European Counter Terrorism Centre. “Challenge Compass permits us to intervene earlier, safeguard victims and disrupt those that exploit vulnerability for extremist functions. No nation can deal with this risk alone – and thru this cooperation, we’re closing the gaps they attempt to cover in.”
Described by Europol as a decentralized nihilistic extremist community, The Com is a loose-knit community of English-speaking cybercriminals identified for concentrating on, victimizing, and recruiting younger folks for extortion, violence, and the manufacturing of kid sexual exploitation materials (CSAM).
The Com operates brazenly throughout social media, messaging apps, on-line gaming environments, and music streaming companies, and it’s organized into a number of subgroups with numerous objectives, together with:
- Offline Com, which promotes property harm, harming others, and committing acts of terrorism,
- Cyber Com, which orchestrates community intrusions and ransomware assaults,
- (S)extortion Com, which coerces minors into intercourse crimes and encourages self-harm and suicide.
One other subgroup that first surfaced in 2021 and is named “764” is very infamous inside The Com because it grooms younger folks into producing specific content material, which is then used for blackmail or shared amongst members.
Two alleged 764 leaders (21-year-old Leonidas Varagiannis and 20-year-old Prasan Nepal) have been arrested in April 2025 and charged with working a global baby exploitation ring, and at the moment are going through life in jail.
“The allegations on this case are usually not solely disturbing, they’re additionally each father or mother’s nightmare. The variety of victims allegedly exploited by these defendants, and the depths of depravity are staggering,” stated U.S. Lawyer Edward R. Martin Jr on the time.
“Justice calls for that our response be swift so as to guarantee public security, maintain the wrongdoers accountable, and convey the victims some sense of closure to allow them to heal.”
The Com has beforehand been linked to high-profile ransomware assaults in opposition to Marks & Spencer, Co-op, and Harrods in April 2025, in addition to Las Vegas on line casino breaches in September 2023.
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