FBI Seizes Hacking Forums Nulled.to and Cracked.io

The FBI has seized a pair of internet forums dedicated to computer hacking and forced the affected domains offline. 

The crackdown ensnared Cracked[.]io and Nulled[.]to, two forums known for hosting and selling illegal material, including stolen databases, compromised accounts, and hacking tools. On Wednesday, security researchers noticed the forums had been replaced with a seizure notice from international law enforcement that said the forums were taken down as part of “Operation Talent.” The domains for Cracked and Nulled also appear to have been rerouted to FBI servers. 

The FBI didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. But Europol, one of the law enforcement agencies on the seizure notice, confirmed to PCMag that an operation was taking place. “More information will be released in the next 24 hours,” the agency said.  

The crackdown not only disrupts a way for cyber criminals to generate business, but might also uncover information about the hackers who used Cracked and Nulled. “This website, as well as the information on the customers and victims of the website, has been seized by international law enforcement partners,” the seizure notice points out.

The admins for Cracked[.]io also confirmed that their forum was seized. “We are still waiting for the official court documentation from the data centre and the domain host. We will inform you guys further on those details once we have it,” the team wrote on Telegram. 

In addition, Operation Talent appears to have targeted three other sites: Mysellix[.]io and Sellix[.]io, which focused on accepting digital payments, and Starkrdp[.]io, which offered customers access to virtual servers and was advertised on the Cracked forum. 

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