A new operation carried out in partnership with the US Secret Service, the UK’s National Crime Agency, the Ontario Provincial Police and the Ontario Securities Commission has taken global action against confirmation phishing scams carried out over cryptocurrencies. This initiative, called Operation Atlantic, continues intensively for a week with teams based in San Francisco and Washington.
How Approval Phishing Method Works
This fraud method, called confirmation hunting, is different from classic wallet hacking or private key capture. Victims are shown a fake pop-up or alert screen masquerading as a trustworthy app or service and asked to confirm a transaction. In this step, which is seemingly presented as a routine transaction, a smart contract is actually given full spending authority. Thus, the attacker can immediately and irreversibly withdraw all assets in the wallet to his own account.
The danger of this method is not that it is a technical vulnerability, but that it is completely used to deceive the user. Users unknowingly grant outside access to their accounts, and the process operates through a breach of trust.
Organized Networks and Long-Term Plans
The operation targets large networks that act in an organized manner and implement approval phishing as part of fake investment projects, rather than individual fraudsters. In these long-term fraud patterns, known as ‘pig butchering’, perpetrators spend months establishing trust and creating fake relationships with victims, then directing them to fake investment platforms. Approval phishing usually comes into play at the last stage of this process, and the trust gained from the victim suddenly results in the wallet being completely emptied.
The scale and scope of the operation also reveals that it targets international organized crime organizations. We are talking about fraudulent networks that are not random but have multi-stage and cross-border planning.
Structure of the Operation and Duties of the Teams
Operation Atlantic has three separate teams, each working 16-hour shifts. The first team conducts real-time intervention with exchanges and private sector partners by detecting previously abused confirmations with blockchain monitoring tools. The second team contacts identified victims and provides guidance on how to revoke the consents granted. The third team is preparing a lawsuit against organized crime organizations with the information collected.
This structure shows that law enforcement is taking a new approach to combating crypto scams. Instead of trying to detect damage after the transaction takes place, real-time intervention and detection before losses occur are prioritized.
Experiences from Past Studies
Operation Atlantic builds on the experience of previous initiatives such as Project Atlas and Operation Spincaster, which were developed in 2024. The international cooperation framework and blockchain analysis capacity created by these projects expand the scope of the new operation. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the City of London Police, the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the UK Financial Conduct Authority also contribute to the operation team in this context.
It is stated that the short duration of the operation is due to the aim of rapid intervention and dismantling existing fraudster networks. The data collected will be used in long-term prosecutorial processes after the operation.
