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Details, how the Netherlands fell on the trail of the "Matrix" after the murder of the journalist...
Details emerge of how the encrypted "MATRIX" app was discovered. Yesterday, Europol announced that it has closed the application and secured nearly 2.3 million messages, which were used by criminal groups.
The platform was linked to serious crimes, including international drug trafficking, arms trafficking and money laundering.
According to international media, it was first discovered by Dutch authorities on the phone of a criminal convicted of the 2021 murder of Dutch investigative journalist Peter R. de Vries, who was known for his stories on unsolved crimes.
During the three-month MATRIX investigation, police intercepted and deciphered more than 2.3 million messages in 33 languages from suspected criminals. The platform had nearly 8,000 users, who paid between $1,367 and $1,682 for a six-month subscription.
MATRIX's infrastructure consisted of more than 40 servers located in several countries, with the majority in Germany and France. During the international operation on Tuesday, law enforcement dismantled the servers and arrested three suspects in Spain, France and the Netherlands.
Among those arrested was the suspected owner and operator of the platform, a 52-year-old Lithuanian citizen, who was working with a 30-year-old man for cash and about 500,000 euros in cryptocurrencies. Authorities said they also seized four vehicles and more than 970 cellphones.
A website is warning Matrix users that some messages sent through the platform have been intercepted.
" It is not the first time and it will not be the last time that we can read the messages in real time. We gained access to data related to this service, and our investigation does not end here ," the site says.
According to Dutch police, "MATRIX" had its own operating system and various applications for encrypted messaging, secure phone calls, video and audio sharing, and anonymous web browsing. The platform even featured a gambling app and its own currency for paying subscription fees. The app was mainly installed on Google Pixel phones.
Europol said MATRIX's infrastructure was technically more complex than that of previously hit platforms such as Sky ECC and EncroChat. Users could get the service by invitation only.
" The founders were convinced that the service was superior and more secure than previous applications used by criminals ," Europol said.
Sky ECC's customer base was much larger than that of MATRIX. As of 2021, the platform had more than 70,000 users, including over 11,000 in the Netherlands and another 6,000 in Belgium.
" The landscape of criminal communication has changed after the removal of Sky ECC, EncroChat, Exclu and Ghost. Criminals now use a greater number of applications and use more complex technologies ," said the Dutch police, reports "The Record Media".
At the same time, Europol has reacted to the Albanian media. They themselves have confirmed that Albanian is among the 33 languages used.
" I can confirm that Albanian was among the languages used in the application. The case is being handled by a joint investigation team (JIT) involving French and Dutch authorities, supported by an Operational Task Force established at Europol. This task force includes law enforcement forces from France, the Netherlands, Spain, Lithuania and Italy ," Europol said.
This means that very soon there will be developments in Albania as well, as messages from criminal groups will appear. Nuredin Dumani himself has confirmed that he used this application together with Suel Çela. / Pamphlet
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