The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has taken DEER.io website off the air. The platform primarily offered stolen data and accepted payments in bitcoin (BTC) and other crypto currencies.

The website was hosted in Russia, but the U.S. Department of Justice announced earlier this week that it managed to take the website offline after all.

DEER.io was an online platform that allowed hundreds of shops to sell illegal products. On the digital shelves, for example, were hacked accounts and data.

The FBI arrested the operator of the platform, Kirill Victorovich Firsov, earlier this month. This happened at an airport in New York.

When the FBI takes a website offline, they’re happy to let it know. You can’t miss the seizure when you visit the platform.

DEER.IO has been on the air since 2013. At the time of the seizure, 24,000 (!) webshops were connected to the platform. Reportedly, they collectively raised $17 million.

Robert Brewer, a U.S. attorney, explains: “There is a strong underground market for hacked/stolen information.” He says DEER.IO gave criminals a good hope of selling this data without getting caught.

Pay subscription in bitcoin

Cybercriminals who wanted to open a store through DEER.IO had to pay 800 rubles a month. That’s about $12.50. The bills could be paid with bitcoin, but also other payment options like the Russian WebMoney were accepted.

Once the criminals had paid, they were helped to set up the store. This way they could easily start uploading their stolen information or other services. A wallet was also set up to accept payments in bitcoin.

The FBI looked at about 250 stores that sold thousands of files with usernames, passwords and addresses. Information such as citizen service numbers was also shared. Most of the victims are from the United States and Europe.