Criminal gangs that used a secure-messaging app called ANOM unwittingly allowed the FBI and other law enforcement agencies to eavesdrop on their conversations
More than 32 tons of drugs were seized along with 250 firearms, 55 luxury cars and more than USD 148 million in cash and cryptocurrencies after the criminal gangs divulged their plans on a messaging app secretly run by the FBI.
Encrypted-messaging app Signal appears to have been blocked in mainland China, where the internet is tightly controlled by the government.
More than 800 suspects were arrested and more than 32 tons of drugs seized, including cocaine, cannabis, amphetamines and methamphetamines. Police also seized 250 guns, 55 luxury cars and more than $148 million in cash and cryptocurrencies. An indictment unsealed Tuesday in San Diego named 17 foreign distributors charged with racketeering conspiracy.
The seeds of the sting were sown when law enforcement agencies took down a company called Phantom Secure that provided customized end-to-end encrypted devices to criminals, according to court papers.
Unlike typical cellphones, the devices do not make phone calls or browse the internet but allow for secure messaging. As an outgrowth of the operation, the FBI recruited a collaborator who was developing a next-generation secure-messaging platform for the criminal underworld called ANOM. The collabor