THE Com arrest operation, Project Compass, began in January 2025 and has culminated in 30 arrests of alleged members, according to Europol. Europol notes that 179 members have been fully or partially identified by investigators, with 62 victims identified and four safeguarded as part of the effort. The initiative is led by Europol’s European Counter Terrorism Centre and involves law enforcement collaboration across 28 countries, including the US, the United Kingdom, Canada, and several EU member states.
The Com, short for “The Community,” is described as a loose English-speaking cybercriminal collective with sub-groups such as Scattered Spider and Scattered Lapsus$ Hunters, and it uses social media, messaging apps, online gaming and music platforms to recruit and exploit young people. In relation to sub-groups, the US Department of Justice has described 764 as a nihilistic violent extremist network, and last April two alleged ringleaders of 764 were arrested.
Europol emphasises that Project Compass will continue to build a reliable network of Member States and Third Countries to aid investigations into The Com and to share information and strategies among partners.