From a broader viewpoint, this takedown holds significance for public safety. The dark web is no longer an untouchable sanctuary, and even privacy-centric cryptocurrencies can’t fully shield operations from discovery. These operations also serve as a warning shot to other cybercriminal networks. This points to a strategy that builds momentum with every operation.
Bridging The Divide: Actionable Strategies To Secure Your SaaS Environments
Authorities seized assets valued at 7.8 million euros, including cryptocurrency and luxury goods, and deployed around 300 officers across multiple countries during the operation. Archetyp Market was one of the few marketplaces allowing the sale of highly potent synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, contributing to broader health threats and overdose risks in Europe and beyond. Authorities from multiple countries, including Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and the United States, worked together to investigate and take down a major online criminal marketplace, demonstrating the need for cross-border efforts to combat cyber-enabled crime. Such signatures are intended to confirm that vendors still have access to their accounts and have not been arrested or compromised.
Archetyp Market 2020 June 2025 Operation Deep Sentinel
The digital drug bazaar had evolved into one of the dark web’s most prominent hubs, boasting over 612,000 users and generating more than €250 million (nearly \$289 million) in illegal cryptocurrency transactions. Archetyp was founded in May 2020 as an online marketplace to facilitate the illicit drug trade. They were initially impressed by the libertarian philosophy of the Silk Road marketplace, but after its seizure, many of the replacement markets they found were focused more on profit than this libertarian philosophy. In an interview with German website tarnkappe.info de, the founder of the market stated that they grew up in a deprived area and first encountered drugs at a young age.
Scale And Reach Of Archetyp Market
Incognito Market shares the same #1/#2 market status based on the number of vendors. Archetyp is one of only 5 markets on Dread’s Darknet Markets Superlist. Archetyp's website went down ostensibly for maintenance late last week, sparking fears among users that the admin was pulling an exit scam – taking all user and vendor market balances and disappearing. In total, police seized 47 smartphones, 45 computers, as well as narcotics and other assets, which will be analyzed for further investigative leads. The suspected admin of the operations owns property in Hanover and Bucharest too, all of which were searched by domestic law enforcement. The website for Archetyp Market was seized and its alleged administrator, a 30-year-old German national, was arrested in Barcelona, Spain.
Europol said Archetyp had a user base of more than 600,000, a total transaction volume of at least 250 million euros ($287 million) and over 17,000 listings, with most geared toward the sale of illicit drugs, including cocaine, MDMA and amphetamines. Despite increasing law enforcement efforts, blockchain intelligence firm TRM Labs said in a report on Monday that even as the dark web platforms fall, “the ecosystem remains highly adaptive,” with illicit vendors setting shop on apps such as Telegram and Signal. Such dark web-based markets rely on cryptocurrencies for trade, and Archetyp used the privacy-focused token Monero (XMR) for its transactions. Key Archetyp personal and technical infrastructure were targeted in the raids, which saw the alleged administrator, a German national, arrested in Spain, with Europol saying they also arrested a moderator and six of the site’s largest vendors in Germany and Sweden. Targeting critical infrastructure rather than just users helps cripple future attempts to revive the platform under a new brand. In total, the operation led to the seizure of 47 smartphones, 45 computers, large quantities of drugs, and assets worth €7.8 million.
A Historic Blow To Darknet Crime
However, the same instability that triggered a wave of confusion and mistrust also reinforced operational security discipline. In parallel, many began migrating to alternative markets, initially Abacus and TorZon Market, which became early landing zones. It was in this vacuum that Archetyp emerged, eventually becoming a key landing zone for vendors displaced by earlier market collapses. Archetyp was more than just the next online drug market to fall, having absorbed much of the vendor traffic displaced by earlier market closures. They noted that the footage included references to moderators’ avatars and usernames, leading to a community-wide decoding effort, with users scrambling to figure out who had been arrested, how they had been exposed and how exposed they themselves might be. While few details have emerged about the other arrests, dark web users quickly began to analyze the now-removed official video of the operation released by the BKA.
Global Police Operation Dismantles One Of The Darknet’s Longest-Running Drug Markets: Archetyp Market Taken Offline
By tracing financial flows, analysing digital forensic evidence, and working closely with partners on the ground, authorities were able to deliver a decisive blow to one of the most prolific drug markets on the dark web. In parallel, measures were taken in Germany and Sweden against one moderator and six of the marketplace’s highest vendors, and assets worth EUR 7.8 million seized. Law enforcement authorities across Europe have dismantled ‘Archetyp Market’, the most enduring dark web marketplace, following a large-scale operation involving six countries, supported by Europol and Eurojust, according to a press release today. It comes after international law enforcement agencies led by the FBI seized a sprawling dark web marketplace popular with cybercriminals back in 2023. 'This operation led by the German authorities marks the end of a criminal service that enabled the anonymous trade in high volumes of illicit drugs, including cocaine, MDMA, amphetamines, and synthetic opioids', the statement said. It added that the platform's infrastructure in the Netherlands was taken offline and that the mastermind behind the operation – a 30-year-old German known as 'Big Boss' – had been arrested in Barcelona.
About Archetyp Market
Investigators seized assets worth approximately €7.8 million (about $9 million), including luxury vehicles and cryptocurrency. Authorities believe the man, who allegedly used the pseudonym ASNT, ran the platform as part of an organized criminal group trafficking large quantities of narcotics. The suspected operator of the site — a 30-year-old German national — was arrested at his home in Barcelona. They may also raise privacy and surveillance concerns, warning that aggressive cyber policies risk collateral impacts on online freedom and legitimate users of anonymity technologies. Visitors to the Archetyp Market website are now greeted by a banner detailing the takedown.
As Europol’s Rob Wainwright noted, users flocked to Hansa expecting refuge, only to be swept up in a trap. Simultaneously, Dutch police quietly took over Hansa Market, a Tor site popular in Europe in June 2017. The site’s creator, Alexandre Cazes, was arrested in Thailand on July 5 and later died in custody.
It supported 5,400 vendors and about 1.15 million customers worldwide. Unlike overt seizures, Dream’s shutdown was an exit by administrators, a pattern sometimes seen when market owners bail out. Dozens of Dream Market drug dealers were nabbed e.g. a U.S. heroin syndicate. This announcement coincided with Operation SaboTor, a multinational effort targeting opioid vendors. Dream’s peak traffic was in the hundreds of thousands of listings, though exact numbers weren’t made public.
By far the largest darknet market by volume was Hydra, launched in late 2015 in Russia. Like others, WSM sold tons of drugs, fake goods and hacking software. Launched in 2013, Dream Market was a top tier marketplace especially after AlphaBay’s fall.
Dark Web’s Longest-standing Drug Market Seized In Multinational Effort
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- “This domain has been seized by the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) on behalf of the Attorney General’s Office in Frankfurt am Main as part of a coordinated law enforcement operation.
- And so, the cycle continues – one closure followed by the next platform launch.
- According to TRM Labs, cryptocurrency-enabled online drug sales grew by more than 19% from 2023 to 2024, reaching nearly USD 2.4 billion in total volume.
- The operation, dubbed Deep Sentinel, unfolded between June 11 and 13 and involved 300 officers in six countries.
- One moderator and six of the top vendors on the platform were also arrested and assets worth 7.8 million euros were seized in the process.
One key moderator and six top vendors — some responsible for thousands of drug shipments — were arrested in Germany and Sweden. But the platform’s downfall began with a coordinated effort between police forces, cybercrime experts, and judicial authorities. Through an extensive network of over 3,200 registered vendors, the platform listed more than 17,000 drug-related products.
In total, law enforcement officers seized 47 smartphones, 45 computers, narcotics, and assets worth €7.8 million from all suspects during Operation Deep Sentinel. It was seized in June 2025 by the BKA, the German federal police agency. Archetyp or Archetyp Market was a darknet market that was launched in May 2020. A seizure notice has replaced the former marketplace, and a message directed at the underground economy has published. Authorities emphasized that cooperation across borders, combined with targeted technical expertise, played a critical role in the platform’s closure.
The durability of these markets tells us that if policing responses keep following the same playbook, they will keep getting the same results. The textile industry is committed to fostering innovation across all aspects of its operations. Experience seamless transactions and a vibrant community.
Major Police Operation Takes Down Notorious Dark Web Marketplace Archetyp Market
The creator of archetyp has posted on with his PGP signature. Anyone who still has access (or claims to have access) is accessing a fake site designed to steal users funds. It's common knowledge Archetyp has been seized.
