The US Secret Service, the UK’s National Crime Agency, the Ontario Provincial Police, and the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) are jointly hosting an international law enforcement initiative to identify victims who may risk losing or may have lost crypto assets through approval phishing.
According to the OSC’s news release, the joint international initiative called Operation Atlantic aims to:
- Facilitate a coordinated disruption of bad actors carrying out organized crypto fraud schemes
- Warn investors early and help them secure their assets, avoid additional losses, and recover stolen funds
- Promote public awareness about crypto investment scams
“Operation Atlantic is a strong example of the OSC's commitment to working across borders to tackle the growing risks posed by scams,” said Bonnie Lysyk, the OSC’s executive vice president for enforcement, in the news release.
Lysyk shared that Operation Atlantic will utilize innovative techniques and advanced tools to attain the initiative’s objectives.
Brent Daniels, deputy assistant director for the US Secret Service’s Office of Field Operations, noted that victims lose millions to approval phishing and investment scams every year.
“During Operation Atlantic, the U.S. Secret Service, alongside our international law enforcement partners, will identify and disrupt these scams in near real-time denying criminals the ability to further profit from their crimes,” Daniels said in the news release.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the City of London Police, the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, and the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority are also participating, with private industry partners closely collaborating.
“This joint international operation really brings together strong relationships,” said Phil Macey, crypto manager at the UK’s National Crime Agency, in the news release. “Criminals operate across borders, so our response must do the same.”
“We’re proud to be part of Operation Atlantic, which builds on that approach by uniting international partners to take action in real time,” added Detective Superintendent Jennifer Spurrell, director of the Ontario Provincial Police’s Financial Crimes Services Bureau. “As fraud becomes increasingly global, this level of collaboration is essential.”
Operation Atlantic aims to build on Project Atlas, an operation spearheaded by the Ontario Provincial Police and attended by the US Secret Service. This 2024 initiative tackled international cryptocurrency investment fraud networks.
About approval phishing
The OSC’s news release provided more information regarding approval phishing. Also known as pig butchering, this type of increasingly sophisticated scam is frequently associated with cryptocurrency investment scams.
With the goal of tricking victims into unknowingly approving full access to an investor’s cryptocurrency wallet, a scammer will:
- Send a fake pop‑up or alert, apparently coming from a trusted app or service
- Ask the victim to grant access
- Gain complete control of the crypto wallet after the victim has granted the request
- Transfer the funds