A global anti-fraud operation conducted across 97 countries and territories led to the arrest of 5,811 people and the seizure of illicit assets worth US$293 million. ‘Operation First Light 2026’ (15 January 2026 – 30 April 2026), run in coordination with INTERPOL, was aimed at combating social engineering scams and related money laundering activities.
Social engineering is a broad term that describes methods of taking advantage of a person’s trust to obtain money or confidential information. Such fraud may include business email compromise, sextortion, as well as romance, impersonation or investment scams.
action against big targets
After an initial phase of intelligence gathering and sharing, the participating countries participated in operational activities for more than three months. This included proactive action against major targets, raids on identified locations, blocking or freezing bank accounts and virtual wallets, seeking Interpol notices and diffusions, and proactively using Interpol’s ‘Global Rapid Intervention of Payments’ (I-GRIP).
More than 142,000 victims identified
I-GRIP is a stop-payment mechanism that helps rapidly stop illicit financial activities in both fiat and virtual assets. More than 142,000 victims were identified worldwide during ‘Operation First Light 2026’.
This shows the extent to which social engineering scams and fraud have grown into a major international threat, affecting individuals, businesses and governments. Other important results include:
- 152,808 cases were analyzed.
- 31,014 bank accounts were blocked.
- 23,715 cases were resolved.
- 15,606 suspects were identified.
- 99 notices and diffusions were issued.
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