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Operation Endgame

Operation Endgame wave 2

May 2025, Multi threat campaign
Led by Bundeskriminalamt

Verified core entry, last reviewed August 21, 2026

What was taken down?

Approximately 300 servers disrupted worldwide; roughly 650 domains neutralized; approximately 3.5 million EUR in cryptocurrency seized during the wave.[1][2][4]

See what happened

What happened to the people?

Officials reported 20 charged.
3 charged and 1 publicly wanted named in the public record.
Group accounted for: Members remain at large

See people and accountability

Did it stay down?

Not established in the public record. No later activity is recorded against this entry.

See what happened afterward

Second Endgame wave targeting initial-access malware and loaders, combining infrastructure seizure with a large set of criminal charges including the DanaBot indictment and the Qakbot administrator.[1][2][4]

Announced May 23, 2025.

Date
May 19 to May 22, 2025
Target
DanaBot, Bumblebee, Lactrodectus, Qakbot, HijackLoader, Trickbot, Warmcookie, malware dropper ecosystem
Activity
Multi threat campaign, Malware and botnets, Ransomware, Fraud and stolen data
Operational lead
BKA
Partners
Europol, USAO-CDCA[1][2][4]
Jurisdiction
Germany, Netherlands, France, Denmark, United Kingdom, United States, and Canada
Outcome
Approximately 300 servers disrupted worldwide; roughly 650 domains neutralized; approximately 3.5 million EUR in cryptocurrency seized during the wave.
Status
Completed
Legal mechanism
National judicial orders across participating states; US indictments (Central District of California and others); Europol and Eurojust coordination
Group accounted for
Members remain at large

Infrastructure

300 servers disabled and 650 domains seized.

approximately 300
servers disabled
approximately 650
domains seized
Identifier Recorded as Status Notes
Not published approximately 300 servers Disabled Approximately 300 servers disrupted worldwide.[4]
Not published approximately 650 domains Seized Approximately 650 domains neutralized.[4]

Domains and onion addresses are shown defanged. Where the record gives a count but no identifier, the count is shown in place of one. This list carries only what appears in the cited sources.

3
charged
1
publicly wanted

Named in the public record: 3 charged and 1 publicly wanted.

Figures count individuals named in charging documents and official statements, each person once per outcome. People alleged to be involved but not publicly identified are not counted.

Reported and named. Officials reported 20 charged. 3 charged and 1 publicly wanted named in the public record. The two figures come from different places and are never added together. Officials publish a headline total, and this index counts only the individuals it can name from the cited record.
Person Role Current public status
Lead defendant, DanaBot malware scheme Charged
Charging authority
United States Attorney's Office for the Central District of California
Main charges
Not established in the public record
Case number
Not established in the public record
Arresting authority
Not established in the public record
Arrest location
Not established in the public record
Extradition status
Not established in the public record
Conviction or plea
Not established in the public record
Sentence
Not established in the public record
Segment
Core operator
Sources
[3]
Lead defendant, DanaBot malware scheme Charged
Charging authority
United States Attorney's Office for the Central District of California
Main charges
Not established in the public record
Case number
Not established in the public record
Arresting authority
Not established in the public record
Arrest location
Not established in the public record
Extradition status
Not established in the public record
Conviction or plea
Not established in the public record
Sentence
Not established in the public record
Segment
Core operator
Sources
[3]
Leader and developer of the Qakbot botnet ChargedPublicly wanted
Charging authority
United States Attorney's Office for the Central District of California
Main charges
Conspiracy to commit computer fraud
Case number
Not established in the public record
Arresting authority
Not established in the public record
Arrest location
Not established in the public record
Extradition status
Not established in the public record
Conviction or plea
Not established in the public record
Sentence
Not established in the public record
Segment
Core operator
Sources
[1]

Aleksandr Stepanov

Lead defendant, DanaBot malware scheme. Current public status: Charged.

Charging authority
United States Attorney's Office for the Central District of California
Main charges
Not established in the public record
Case number
Not established in the public record
Arresting authority
Not established in the public record
Arrest location
Not established in the public record
Extradition status
Not established in the public record
Conviction or plea
Not established in the public record
Sentence
Not established in the public record
Segment
Core operator
Sources
[3]

Artem Aleksandrovich Kalinkin

Lead defendant, DanaBot malware scheme. Current public status: Charged.

Charging authority
United States Attorney's Office for the Central District of California
Main charges
Not established in the public record
Case number
Not established in the public record
Arresting authority
Not established in the public record
Arrest location
Not established in the public record
Extradition status
Not established in the public record
Conviction or plea
Not established in the public record
Sentence
Not established in the public record
Segment
Core operator
Sources
[3]

Rustam Rafailevich Gallyamov

Leader and developer of the Qakbot botnet. Current public status: Charged and Publicly wanted.

Charging authority
United States Attorney's Office for the Central District of California
Main charges
Conspiracy to commit computer fraud
Case number
Not established in the public record
Arresting authority
Not established in the public record
Arrest location
Not established in the public record
Extradition status
Not established in the public record
Conviction or plea
Not established in the public record
Sentence
Not established in the public record
Segment
Core operator
Sources
[1]

Rows expand to show charging authority, case identifiers, custody status, and sources.

Group accounted for: Members remain at large

Authorities announced international targets who remained at large, and the DanaBot defendants were largely charged in absentia.

Multiple distinct malware crews targeted in one wave.

See the organizations and roles behind this action

Prosecutions ongoing; cumulative Endgame cryptocurrency seizures reported at approximately 21.2 million EUR.[1][2][4]

Not established in the public record. No later activity is recorded against this entry.

Return class G. The class is a research grading carried in the source dataset and its scale is not published, so this page relies on the relationship and confidence values instead. How this index handles it.

Numbered markers throughout this entry link to the source that supports the claim beside them.

Official sources

  1. [1]
    US Department of Justice announcement charging the alleged Qakbot leader and seizing cryptocurrency

    United States Department of Justice, May 22, 2025, Source grade P1

    Gallyamov charge, continued operation after the 2023 takedown

    No address recorded for this source. Publisher, title, and date are given so it can be retrieved from the publisher.

  2. [2]
    United States v. Aleksandr Stepanov et al., DanaBot indictment

    United States District Court for the Central District of California, May 22, 2025, Source grade P0

    16-defendant DanaBot charges announced with the Endgame wave

    No address recorded for this source. Publisher, title, and date are given so it can be retrieved from the publisher.

  3. [3]
    16 defendants federally charged in connection with DanaBot malware scheme

    USAO Central District of California, May 22, 2025, Source grade P1

    Names lead defendants Aleksandr Stepanov ('JimmBee') and Artem Kalinkin ('Onix') among 16 charged in the DanaBot scheme (part of Operation Endgame wave 2).

    No address recorded for this source. Publisher, title, and date are given so it can be retrieved from the publisher.

  4. [4]
    Europol release on Operation Endgame's 2025 action against initial access malware

    Europol, May 23, 2025, Source grade P2

    Wave 2 infrastructure figures, charges, cryptocurrency seizures

    No address recorded for this source. Publisher, title, and date are given so it can be retrieved from the publisher.

Coverage note.
  • The DanaBot indictment names 16 defendants, most believed to be in Russia. Only Gallyamov is carried as a named person record in this pass; the remaining DanaBot defendants are a documented gap.
  • Reported charged count of 20 is an official aggregate and is not equal to the number of named person records.