A Europol sting has shut down over 373,000 dark web sites, many claiming to sell child sexual abuse material (CSAM). A global operation led by German authorities and supported by Europol was launched against one of the largest networks of fraudulent platforms in the dark web this month. The investigation began in mid-2021 against the dark web platform “Alice with Violence CP”. Over nearly five years of investigation, German authorities discovered that a single individual operated over 373,000 onion domains on the dark web. Throughout the years of investigation, authorities acted immediately whenever they identified children to be in danger, taking appropriate measures to protect their well-being.

Source: Irish Examiner March 22, 2026 20:30 UTC