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Each ANOM user was identified by a Jabber Identification – similar to a smartphone PIN – was chosen by each user to identify themselves as opposed to using their real names. In order to get a hold of an ANOM-encrypted device, each criminal had to be green-lighted by another criminal who was already using the software. Given the high level of technical care and expertise needed to set up this master key process, the collaboration between the FBI, AFP, confidant, and other European law enforcement agencies was needed to ensure that ANOM could be launched effectively and discreetly within criminal networks.ĪNOM could only be used on devices sold within the black market and were stripped of the ability to make calls or send emails. The newly encrypted message is then passed to a second FBI-owned iBot server to be decrypted for viewing within the U.S. The message is then decrypted with the master key and then immediately re-encrypted with the FBI encryption code. For devices located outside of the U.S., an encrypted “BCC” of each sent message is routed to an “iBot” server located outside of the U.S. This allowed law enforcement to decrypt and store messages as they were transmitted. The devices themselves were encrypted but the FBI, AFP, and the confidential source collaborated to build a master key into the existing encryption system. In “Operation Trojan Shield,” various European law enforcement agencies, the FBI and AFP collaborated with a confidential source to construct, market, and upkeep the next encrypted communication platform to arise on the black market. While the FBI previously dismantled hardened encryption companies utilized amongst criminals to communicate – such as Phantom Secure – new platforms would emerge as substitutes for their predecessors. Phantom Secure was not the first, nor would it be the last, of the many encrypted devices to appear on the black market to plan and executive criminal activity.
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During his plea hearing in October 2018, Ramos admitted that Phantom Secure laundered drug trafficking proceeds, as well as aided and abetted the importation, exportation, and distribution of illegal substances across international borders. Law enforcement agents therefore would be unable to collect evidence regarding the conversations that criminals were having on their encrypted devices.Ĭompanies that provided these encrypted devices were generally aware that their target audience is utilizing their products for criminal activity in March 2018, the CEO of Phantom Secure, Vincent Ramos, and four other principals of the company were indicted for aiding and abetting the distribution of cocaine. For many years, contents in encrypted devices did in fact remain secure communication was often limited to a self-selected group of individuals using the same encryption platform. Encrypted devices are tools that both send and retrieve encrypted electronic communications, allowing criminals to openly discuss their activities with confidence that their contents will remain secure. Īs technology has grown over the years, criminals have utilized hardened encrypted devices as a tool to obstruct any federal investigations against them. ANOM, a highly popular encryption platform amongst criminals worldwide, was secretly used as a surveillance tool in an investigation known as “Operation Trojan Shield” in order to discreetly observe and curtail the criminal activities in Australia and beyond. On June 8, 2021, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Australia’s Federal Police (AFP) publicly announced the arrests of more than 800 individuals utilizing a FBI-controlled encrypted platform to facilitate their criminal activities.