Interpol arrests over 1,200 in Africa-wide crackdown, seizes $1 million

More than 1,200 people were arrested and some $100 million recovered in a major crackdown against rising cybercrime in Africa, global police organisation Interpol said Friday.

The United Kingdom and 18 African countries carried out the operation dubbed "Serengeti 2.0" between June and August, identifying some 88,000 victims of of fraud and illegal cryptocurrency networks, a statement read.

Reports of online fraud have spiked 3,000 percent in some African countries during the last year, Interpol said in a recent report.

Cybercrime now makes up more than 30 percent of all reported crime in west and east Africa, the report said.

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