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The “covert app” in the headline was Exclu Messenger, a paid smartphone messaging service that police dismantled in February 2023. Dutch police initially reported 42 arrests; Eurojust’s release on 6 February 2023 reported 45 arrests during the action day. Authorities said they had accessed and read Exclu messages for five months before the operation, but did not disclose a specific encryption flaw or say they had broken a named cipher.
What was the Exclu app?
Exclu was a smartphone app for exchanging text messages, photos, notes, voice memos, chat conversations and videos. Dutch police said access required a licence costing €800 for six months. Eurojust and Dutch police each estimated that the service had about 3,000 users; Dutch police said around 750 spoke Dutch. These are law-enforcement estimates reported in 2023, not a count of users active today.
Eurojust reported that Exclu’s server was based in Germany. Users reportedly praised the service’s reliability and security, while Dutch police said its owners and administrators promoted it as highly secure. Those accounts reflect reported praise and marketing, not independent verification of Exclu’s security.
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1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsPolice said the service was dismantled during the operation. Eurojust’s 6 February 2023 release stated that Exclu was no longer available to users.
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How did police read Exclu messages?
Dutch police said investigators had read Exclu messages for five months before the action. In its 3 February 2023 release, updated on 6 February, the Dutch National Police said it had gained access to data from the service and read messages during that period. The statement described the use of specialist technology, cybercrime expertise and police hacking authority, combined with traditional investigative methods to identify users.
The official accounts do not identify a particular vulnerability, explain the technical method used to access messages, or establish that police defeated a named encryption algorithm. “Cracking” is therefore a headline shorthand for investigative access, not a disclosed account of a specific cryptographic break.
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Why did official reports give different arrest totals?
The two official releases reported different totals. Dutch police’s initial account, published on 3 February 2023 and updated on 6 February, said 42 people had been arrested. Eurojust’s release dated 6 February reported 45 people arrested during the action day. The public releases do not explain the discrepancy, so neither figure should be presented as an unqualified, agreed total.
| Official account | Arrests reported | Countries named for searches | Seizure detail reported |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dutch National Police, published 3 February 2023; updated 6 February | 42 arrests | Netherlands, Germany and Belgium | Two drug laboratories, a cocaine-washing facility, several kilograms of drugs, more than €4 million in cash, luxury goods and several firearms |
| Eurojust, 6 February 2023 | 45 arrests during the action day | Netherlands, Germany and Poland | Two drug laboratories, €5.5 million in cash, 300,000 ecstasy tablets, 20 firearms and 200 phones seized for investigation |
The country lists and seizure figures above are the respective agencies’ reported accounts, not a combined inventory. Both releases reported 79 searches or locations searched, but they named different countries alongside that figure. Eurojust listed Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and Poland as countries participating in the investigation.
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What was the investigation and operation timeline?
- German authorities began investigating Exclu in June 2020, according to Eurojust and Dutch police.
- The Dutch investigation into the service’s owners and administrators began in September 2020. Police called it investigation 26Samber.
- A separate Dutch investigation, 26Lytham, began on 28 April 2022 and focused on users suspected of crimes in an organized context. These were police investigation names, not the name of Exclu or the operation.
- Eurojust said it supported the investigations from February 2022 and organized eight coordination meetings to prepare for the action day and dismantling. Europol provided operational support, including analysis and technical systems.
- In February 2023, authorities carried out searches and arrests and dismantled the service. Eurojust reported that 1,200 police officers were deployed.
Who was arrested, and what do the reports establish?
The releases said arrests included Exclu users as well as the service’s owners or administrators. Police suspected the providers of facilitating criminal activity; that is an allegation, not a finding of guilt. The reviewed official releases do not identify individual suspects or report convictions or eventual court outcomes. An arrest count alone does not establish anyone’s guilt.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What did authorities say about access to the messages?
The Dutch National Police’s 3 February 2023 release, updated on 6 February, said investigators had succeeded in gaining access to data from a crypto-communications service used by criminals and reading messages over the preceding five months. That English wording is a translation of the original Dutch statement, not an original English quotation. Eurojust’s 6 February release confirmed the service’s takedown, stating: “Following this operation, the service is no longer available for users.”
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