An international crackdown on online fraud led by the UAE has exposed more than $39 billion in illicit funds and assets, with authorities reporting more than 960 arrests across the countries involved.
Operation Confrontation Ghost, overseen by the UAE Ministry of Interior, thwarted more than 123.7 million online fraud attempts worldwide, blocked 4,126 bank accounts, shut down 570 social media accounts and involved 29 raids on locations linked to fraud. The figures were reported on Thursday by state news agency WAM.
Three types of crime in the spotlight
The drive ran from 1 July to 30 September and concentrated on three forms of digital crime: AI-enabled fraud, digital financial fraud and online sextortion. AI-enabled schemes typically use technology that imitates voices or faces, or produces convincing messages at scale, to trick victims into handing over money or personal data.
Beyond the arrests, investigators identified a further 3,500 suspects and 15,500 victims, and participants exchanged more than 9,000 pieces of intelligence. Authorities also said the operation helped secure more than four billion financial transactions each month through tokenisation technology, which replaces sensitive payment details with protected digital substitutes.
A wide coalition
The scale of co-operation was a defining feature. Law enforcement agencies from 30 countries took part, alongside Interpol, the Global Anti-Scam Alliance and 13 private-sector partners from technology, digital platforms and financial services. Partner countries included the UK, Japan, South Korea, Canada, Italy, France, the Netherlands, Brazil, Ecuador, Jordan and Bahrain. Companies involved included the UAE online marketplaces Bayut and Dubizzle, as well as Meta and TikTok.
A country-by-country breakdown of the arrests was not included in the figures reported on Thursday.
What officials said
Col Dana Al Marzouqi, director-general of the Ministry of Interior’s International Affairs Bureau, said the operation demonstrated the importance of international partnerships in confronting fraud networks that exploit online platforms, financial services and emerging technologies for cross-border crime. She said the ministry would keep strengthening co-operation with countries, international organisations and technology and financial companies to protect both the public and businesses.
Dr Monica Juma, executive director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, called the operation a model of international co-operation against new forms of crime. She said the growing use of digital technologies and artificial intelligence in fraud, together with the use of digital platforms, bank accounts and cryptocurrencies to move money and hide its origin, made it necessary to keep strengthening counter-measures and global collaboration.
A growing priority for the UAE
The operation fits a pattern of recent activity. Earlier this month, Sharjah Police arrested 33 people in an operation against a $2.4 billion global money-laundering scheme. In late September, the UAE pledged $5 million to support the Abu Dhabi Declaration on the global fight against crime and said it would work with regional neighbours on combating fraud and money laundering.
Fraud has become one of the fastest-growing categories of crime worldwide because it can be run from anywhere, at low cost, against victims in many countries at once. That is why investigators increasingly depend on shared intelligence and on companies that control the platforms where scams spread. By bringing banks, payment firms, marketplaces and social media companies into the same operation as police forces, the UAE-led campaign aimed to close gaps that criminals have long used to move quickly between jurisdictions.
The results suggest the approach can disrupt scam networks at scale, though the true measure will be whether the arrests lead to convictions and whether the exposed funds can be recovered and returned to victims. Authorities have not said how much of the $39 billion has been seized or frozen.
For residents and businesses in the UAE, the practical message is unchanged: treat unsolicited requests for money, passwords or personal details with caution, and verify any request through official channels before acting.
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