Two Scots have been arrested as cops targeted one of the world’s largest dark web marketplaces

TWO Scots have been arrested in a police operation targeting one of the largest dark web marketplaces.

A 31-year-old man from Aberdeen and another 43-year-old from Glasgow were snatched after police officers from the Cybercrime Task Force executed a series of arrest warrants across the country.

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The activity took place at four addresses, in Dunfermline, Glasgow, Carluke and Aberdeen, as part of an operation led by the FBI and Dutch National Police that followed the destruction of Genesis Market.

Genesis Market was a criminal marketplace aimed at scamming victims, hosting approximately 80 million credentials and digital fingerprints stolen from over two million people around the world.

Detective Inspector Andy Mclean, from Police Scotland’s Cybercrime Unit, said: “The action taken in this country underscores Police Scotland’s commitment to fighting all forms of serious and organized crime and we know that those involved are increasingly using the internet for their own benefit to use.

“We will continue to work with law enforcement agencies in this country and abroad to address and disrupt these types of activities.”

The UK operation follows an FBI investigation into the site and is part of international action in 17 countries.

Elsewhere, we shared how a hacked cache said to contain nearly half a billion WhatsApp phone numbers was reportedly put up for sale on the dark web — but it could be an elaborate scam.

The alleged database reportedly contains 487 million mobile phone numbers from 84 countries – including the UK and US.

It is common for hackers to flog their wares through hacking forums on the dark web.

The post in question, as first reported by Cybernews, appears to be trying to sell a cache of UK mobile numbers for $2,500 – and a US haul for $7,000.

However, there is very little evidence that the find is legitimate and WhatsApp has already denied that the app was breached.

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