Interpol’s Operation Serengeti 2.0 Nets Over 1,200 Cybercriminals in Africa

Interpol’s Operation Serengeti 2.0, conducted from June to August 2025, has led to the arrest of 1,209 cybercriminals across 18 African nations and the United Kingdom, recovering USD 97.4 million. The operation, targeting nearly 88,000 victims of ransomware, online scams, and business email compromise (BEC), dismantled 11,432 malicious infrastructures, marking a significant blow to cybercrime networks in Africa.

In Angola, authorities shut down 25 illegal cryptocurrency mining centers operated by 60 Chinese nationals, seizing equipment worth over USD 37 million. The confiscated infrastructure is now earmarked to bolster power distribution in underserved areas. In Zambia, a large-scale cryptocurrency investment scam defrauded 65,000 victims of an estimated USD 300 million through deceptive high-return promises. Scammers lured victims via aggressive advertising campaigns, directing them to download fraudulent apps. Authorities arrested 15 suspects, seizing domains, mobile numbers, and bank accounts, while also uncovering a suspected human trafficking network linked to the scam center.

Côte d’Ivoire saw the dismantling of a transnational inheritance scam originating in Germany, which tricked victims into paying USD 1.6 million in fees for fake inheritances. Interpol noted that such scams, among the oldest online frauds, remain highly profitable for criminal organizations. The operation, supported by private sector partners like Group-IB and funded by the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, relied on intelligence sharing to target high-impact cybercrimes identified in the 2024 Africa Cyber Threat Assessment Report.

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Interpol, headquartered in Lyon, France, and comprising 196 member countries, continues to tackle global crime through enhanced coordination. Operation Serengeti 2.0 builds on last year’s effort, which arrested over 1,000 suspects targeting 35,000 victims. The operation’s success underscores the growing challenge of cybercrime, with Africa facing rising threats like AI-driven malware. Posts on X hailed the crackdown, with users noting its unprecedented scale. Ongoing investigations are expected to yield further arrests, strengthening Africa’s digital resilience.

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