Phishing Expedition Goes Bust: $12M Scam Loot Caught in Atlantic Freeze

Authorities in the US, UK, and Canada froze $12 million tied to crypto scams in a joint operation called Operation Atlantic. The crackdown, focused on phishing attacks, took place in March and was coordinated by the UK's National Crime Agency (NCA), the US Secret Service, the Ontario Provincial Police, and the Ontario Securities Commission.

Operation Atlantic identified more than 20,000 victims across the three countries, securing and freezing more than $12 million in suspected criminal proceeds. The agency also tracked "more than $45 million stolen in cryptocurrency fraud schemes." Apparently, these scammers missed the memo about being in an industry where "wen lambo" dreams die faster than your average governance token.

"Operation Atlantic is a powerful example of what is possible when international agencies and private industry work side by side," said NCA Deputy Director of Investigations Miles Bonfield.

The operation received assistance from major crypto exchange Binance, which provided live account screening, scam intelligence, and identified active fraud websites still targeting victims. No funds were frozen on Binance itself, as the criminal proceeds were held off-platform.

Approval phishing tricks users into signing malicious permissions that let attackers drain crypto wallets. Unlike typical scams where victims send funds directly, this method silently authorizes scammers to spend specific tokens. It's basically handing someone your credit card and hoping they only buy groceries—turns out hope is not a strategy.

"Approval phishing is one of the most damaging types of scams targeting crypto users today," said Flavio Tonon, Binance's senior regional advisor for Europe, Middle East, and Africa. He noted that blockchain transparency makes it difficult for criminals to escape with their phishing exploits.