Authorities from Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Chad, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe participated in the eight-week crackdown.
Investigators said the operation exposed scams linked to more than $45 million in financial losses and identified 1,247 victims, most of them in Africa but with some cases extending globally. Law enforcement agencies also seized 2,341 devices and dismantled 1,442 malicious IP addresses, servers, and digital domains used to facilitate fraud.
Neal Jetton, INTERPOL’s Director of Cybercrime, emphasized the scale of the threat and the importance of coordinated enforcement.
“These organized cybercriminal syndicates inflict devastating financial and psychological harm on individuals, businesses and entire communities with their false promises,” Jetton said.
“Operation Red Card highlights the importance of collaboration when combatting transnational cybercrime.”
Nigeria, Kenya, Côte d’Ivoire among hardest-hit as cybercrime syndicates expand
Nigeria emerged as one of the key focal points of the operation, with police dismantling a major investment fraud ring that recruited young individuals to carry out phishing, identity theft, and fake cryptocurrency investment scams.
Authorities shut down more than 1,000 fraudulent social media accounts and uncovered a residential property used as a central hub for the criminal enterprise.
INTERPOL said the operation relied heavily on intelligence sharing and collaboration with private-sector partners, including cybersecurity firms and blockchain intelligence providers, reflecting the increasingly sophisticated nature of cybercrime networks.
The success of Operation Red Card 2.0 highlights Africa’s growing institutional capacity to combat digital financial crime as internet penetration, mobile banking, and digital payments expand rapidly across the continent, creating both new economic opportunities and new security challenges.
