VPNLab was a

VPN Virtual private network (VPN) is a network architecture for virtually extending a private network (i.e. any computer network which is not the public Internet) across one or multiple other networks which are either untrusted (as they are not c ...

service that catered to cyber criminals. The service was seized and shut down by

Europol Europol, officially the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation, is the law enforcement agency of the European Union (EU). Established in 1998, it is based in The Hague, Netherlands, and serves as the central hub for coordinating c ...

in January 2022.

History

VPNLab was created in 2008. The service advertised VPN servers in multiple countries and offered The service was known for providing services to cybercriminals, specifically

ransomware Ransomware is a type of malware that Encryption, encrypts the victim's personal data until a ransom is paid. Difficult-to-trace Digital currency, digital currencies such as paysafecard or Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency, cryptocurrencies are com ...

authors. The site accepted a variety of payment methods, including

WebMoney WebMoney is an online payment settlement system established in Russia in 1998. It is one of the largest electronic payments processors in Russia by number of users, with the company reporting 45 million registered accounts and 300,000 active we ...

and

Bitcoin Bitcoin (abbreviation: BTC; Currency symbol, sign: ₿) is the first Decentralized application, decentralized cryptocurrency. Based on a free-market ideology, bitcoin was invented in 2008 when an unknown entity published a white paper under ...

. The "DoubleVPN" service was offered for $129 per year. The owners advertised the website on the

dark web The dark web is the World Wide Web content that exists on darknets ( overlay networks) that use the Internet but require specific software, configurations, or authorization to access. Through the dark web, private computer networks can communica ...

Raid and shutdown

On January 17, 2022, Europol, along with other national law enforcement agencies seized VPNLab's domain. As of January 19, 2022, no arrests were made. Along with Europol, the

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

(United States), Central Directorate of the Judicial Police (France), and

National Crime Agency The National Crime Agency (NCA) is a Law enforcement agency#natlea, national law enforcement agency in the United Kingdom. It is the UK's lead agency against organised crime; Human trafficking, human, Arms trafficking, weapon and Illegal drug t ...

(United Kingdom) were involved in the site raid.

References

Defunct websites Internet services shut down by a legal challenge Virtual private network services Internet properties established in 2008 {{Compu-network-stub