Law enforcement agencies from the United States and the Netherlands have successfully disrupted HeartSender, a sophisticated Pakistani cybercrime operation, in a coordinated effort dubbed "Operation Heart Blocker."
The U.S. Department of Justice and Dutch National Police seized domains and servers belonging to HeartSender, also known as Saim Raza. The criminal network specialized in developing and selling malicious cyber tools, including phishing kits, credential stealers, and cookie grabbers to other cybercriminals.
According to investigators, criminals who purchased HeartSender's illicit tools managed to accumulate over $3 million through various cybercrimes. During the operation, law enforcement recovered millions of records belonging to victims targeted through HeartSender's criminal infrastructure.
The takedown follows recent revelations by cybersecurity journalist Brian Krebs about major security vulnerabilities within HeartSender's own network. These weaknesses included malware infections in their systems and misconfigurations that exposed sensitive operational data and client information.
This operation was executed shortly after a broader international law enforcement campaign, involving the FBI, which targeted illegal marketplaces and cybercrime forums.
The dismantling of HeartSender marks another success in global efforts to combat cybercrime networks and protect potential victims from digital threats.