World's 'most dangerous' criminal hacking network, cracked by the police

Joint operation by the European country to fight against the hackers group. International law enforcement agencies said ,they had dismantled a criminal hacking scheme used to steal billions of dollars from businesses and private citizens worldwide.

Police in six European countries, as well as Canada and the United States, completed a joint operation to take control of Internet servers used to run and control a malware network known as "Emotet," authorities said in a statement.

Germany's federal police agency said. Emotet gives hackers access to computers, downloads malware and locks them until a fee is paid. Emotet is used by cyber criminals to first gain access to a victim's computer before then downloading additional malicious software, such as trojans designed to steal banking passwords or ransomware which can lock a computer until an extortion fee is paid.

Security experts say Emotet's operators often sell access to victims' computers to other hackers, using a "malware-as-a-service" business model that has made them one of the world's most prolific and damaging cybercrime groups.

German police said infections with Emotet had caused at least 14.5 million euros ($17.56 million) of damage in their country. Globally, Emotet-linked damages to cost about $2.5 billion, as per the Ukrainian authority.

Ukraine's General Prosecutor said police ,they had carried out raids in the eastern city of Kharkiv to seize computers used by the hackers. Authorities released photos showing piles of bank cards, cash and a room festooned with tangled computer equipment, but did not say if any arrests were made.