Four people, including one from Medway, have been arrested as part of a international operation to target online hackers.

Led in the UK by the National Crime Agency (NCA), and involving officers from a number of police regional organised crime units, raids were carried out over several days this week, focusing on the threat posed by hackers, who are also known to use tools such as Remote Access Trojans (RATs).

The UK operation is part of international activity, coordinated through Europol, which has resulted in a total of 11 further individuals being apprehended across Estonia, France, Romania, Latvia, Italy, and Norway.

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Here in Britain, a 20-year-old man from Maida Road, Chatham was arrested on Wednesday, and a man and a woman from Leeds were also arrested.

A search warrant executed on a 19-year-old man, from Liverpool by the West Midlands organised crime unit, and he was questioned voluntary.

The investigation is being run in conjunction with the Crown Prosecution Service’s Organised Crime Division.

In addition to arresting people believed to have used RATs, the NCA is using a variety of approaches to warn individuals that any movement into cyber criminality will result in further action.

Criminals who successfully deploy RATs can gain complete control over target computers, wherever they are in the world.

They can turn victims’ webcams on and off, access banking or other personal information, download new and potentially illegal content, and instruct the victim’s computer to help commit acts of criminality.

Victims are typically infected by being convinced to click on a link purporting to be a picture or video, or disguised as a legitimate file, but is instead an installer for the RAT.

NCA action against suspected hackers

In many cases, those who unwittingly install such trojans will have no indication that their machine is infected.

Andy Archibald, from NCA’s national cyber crime unit, said: “The illegal use of Remote Access Trojans is a significant cyber crime threat, demanding this kind of strong, coordinated response from international to local UK level. Suspected users of RATs are continuing to find that, despite having no physical contact or interaction with their victims, they can still be identified, tracked down and arrested by the NCA and its partners.

“This operation demonstrates once again that all of UK law enforcement is working to respond effectively to cyber crime, and together we will continue to collaboratively target those who use technology to misuse other people’s devices, steal their money, or unlawfully access confidential information.

“Anyone who is tempted to get involved in this type of crime should understand that it can result in prison time, and substantial restrictions on your life afterwards.”

The 20-year-old was later bailed until February, 17.