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U.S. authorities have frozen $3.5 million in cryptocurrency during the dismantling of the proxy network SocksEscort., 2026/03/13 17:17:42
The U.S. Department of Justice and Europol have dismantled the SocksEscort hacker network, which had been operational for over a decade, and frozen $3.5 million in cryptocurrency associated with the network.
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The infrastructure of SocksEscort was utilized in fraudulent activities, as stated by the U.S. Department of Justice. In one incident linked to the proxy service, criminals stole approximately $1 million in cryptocurrency from a resident of New York. In another case, a manufacturing company in Pennsylvania suffered losses of around $700,000.
The proxy service enabled hackers to reroute internet traffic through the devices of private users and small businesses. This facilitated the concealment of the true origin of attacks and masked illegal activities, the agency reported.
Over the years, the platform sold access to hundreds of thousands of IP addresses. Operators of SocksEscort promoted so-called “clean IP addresses” from major internet service providers, including Comcast, Spectrum, Verizon, and Charter Communications. Such addresses were rarely blacklisted, allowing criminals to more effectively obscure cyberattacks and other illicit actions against users and businesses, according to U.S. law enforcement officials.
Previous attempts to halt the network’s operations had been made. In 2023, law enforcement temporarily disrupted the service by blocking the server management infrastructure. However, this intervention was short-lived: SocksEscort operators restored the system and continued to manage the network through 15 servers.
Currently, all infected devices that were part of the SocksEscort proxy network have been disconnected from the service, assured representatives of the U.S. Department of Justice.
Earlier, analysts from CertiK, a company specializing in blockchain security and smart contract auditing, reported that the total losses from hacker attacks and vulnerabilities in February were the lowest for a month since March 2025, amounting to approximately $37.7 million. This figure represents a 60% decrease compared to January.
