Australian police infiltrate Ghost app, developed for ‘criminal’ gangs, to arrest dozens of suspects – Firstpost

Australian police said Wednesday they had infiltrated Ghost, an encrypted global communications app designed for criminals, leading to dozens of arrests.

The app’s alleged administrator, Jay Je Yoon Jung, 32, appeared in Sydney court on Wednesday charged with charges including supporting a criminal organisation and benefiting from the proceeds of crime.

Jung has not entered a plea or requested bail. He will remain in custody until his case returns to court in November.

Australian police have arrested 38 suspects in raids in four states in recent days, with arrests also made in Canada, Sweden, Ireland and Italy, Australian Federal Police Deputy Commissioner Ian McCartney said.

“We allege that hundreds of criminals, including members of Italian organised crime, members of motorcycle gangs, Middle Eastern organised crime and Korean organised crime, have used Ghost in Australia and overseas to import illegal drugs and order killings,” McCartney told reporters.

Australian police have prevented 50 people from being killed, kidnapped or seriously injured since March by monitoring threats in 125,000 messages and 120 video calls, Assistant Commissioner Kirsty Schofield said.

Police allege that Jung developed the app specifically for criminal use in 2017.
Australia joined a global taskforce led by Europol targeting Ghost in 2022.

Colonel Florian Manet, head of the technical department of the National Cyber ​​​​Command of the French Ministry of the Interior, said in a statement released by the Australian police that his officers had for years provided the task force with technical tools that helped decrypt the communications.

McCartney said the French had given Australian police a foot in the door to decrypt Ghost’s communications.

According to McCartney, Australian police engineers were able to modify software updates that were regularly released by the administrator.

“We essentially infected the devices, which gave us access to the content on Australian devices,” McCartney said, adding that the alleged administrator lived in his parents’ home in Sydney and had no criminal record.

Jung was arrested at home on Tuesday.

According to police, Jung used a network of resellers to offer specialized devices to criminals around the world.

The modified smartphones were sold for AUD$2,350 (US$1,590), which included a six-month subscription to Ghost and technical support.