Operation Chargeback: international effort uncovers massive fraud

04/12/2025

Operation Chargeback, a coordinated action by international investigative services, dismantles three major fraud and money laundering networks. The operation, launched at the end of 2020, was led by the German Landeszentralstelle Cybercrime (Public Prosecutor's Office in Koblenz) and the Budeskriminalambt (BKA). The operation was supported by Europol and Eurojust.

Between 2016 and 2021, criminal networks used approximately 4.3 million stolen credit card details to carry out more than 19 million fraudulent subscription transactions via fake websites, causing damage of over €300 million. The fraud went undetected for a long time due to small, vaguely described payments and infiltration of four German payment service providers, which also involved internal employees. The proceeds were laundered through a network of more than 500 shell companies and offshore accounts, which meant that the investigation took years. The AMLC reports that, thanks to international cooperation, more than 60 locations in various countries were searched and 18 suspects of different nationalities were arrested. Approximately €35 million in assets and luxury goods were seized. 

In this article from the AMLC, you can read more about how the criminals involved operated.