Europol’s Project COMPASS is an ongoing cross-border law-enforcement project focused on The Com, a decentralised network with subgroups that target children and young people online and offline. Europol’s European Counter Terrorism Centre coordinates cooperation among participating countries, including information exchange, investigation support, data sprints and prevention work. “New playbook” is a metaphor: Europol has described a continuing cooperation project, not published a formal playbook.
What is Europol’s Project COMPASS?
Europol says Project COMPASS began in January 2025 and is ongoing. Its European Counter Terrorism Centre coordinates the project, which brings law-enforcement partners together across borders to address activity linked to The Com. Europol’s project page lists participating countries in Europe and beyond. CyberScoop reported on 26 February 2026 that 28 countries were participating; that is a dated count, not a permanent membership total.
Europol’s ECTC head Anna Sjöberg told CyberScoop on 26 February 2026: “These networks deliberately target children in the digital spaces where they feel most at ease.”
What is The Com?
“The Com” is short for “Community.” Europol describes it as a decentralised network rather than a single centrally directed group. Its subgroups have differing aims; those named by Europol are Cyber Com, Offline Com and (S)extortion Com.
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The decentralised structure matters to the law-enforcement response: activity and information can span different communities, countries and online or offline settings. Sjöberg told CyberScoop on 26 February 2026: “Project Compass allows us to intervene earlier, safeguard victims and disrupt those who exploit vulnerability for extremist purposes,” and, “No country can address this threat alone — and through this cooperation, we are closing the gaps they try to hide in.” Unit 221B chief research officer Allison Nixon cautioned in the same CyberScoop report: “The Com represents a major social problem impacting youth, and peoples’ expectations need to be realistic.”
How does Project COMPASS work?
Europol describes several cooperation methods. These are the project’s coordination activities, not outcomes in themselves.
- Cross-border cooperation: participating law-enforcement partners coordinate across national boundaries.
- Information and expertise exchange: partners share relevant knowledge and information to support work across jurisdictions.
- Investigation support: the project supports ongoing investigations by national authorities.
- Data sprints: participating partners conduct focused work on data relevant to investigations.
- Preventative advice: the project also supports prevention through advice and awareness activity.
What has Project COMPASS achieved?
Europol’s project page, updated 14 August 2026, reports the following operational outputs:
| Published measure | Reported total |
|---|---|
| Victims safeguarded | 4 |
| Perpetrators arrested | 30 |
| Victims identified and partially identified | 62 |
| Perpetrators identified and partially identified | 179 |
| Joint awareness-raising activities | 9 |
Europol says the arrests contributed to AP Dolphin. The labels matter: “identified and partially identified” combines full and partial identification, so it does not mean every person in those totals has been fully identified. Arrests are not convictions. CyberScoop reported on 26 February 2026 that Europol had not publicly identified the people arrested under Project COMPASS at that time.
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These figures are published operational counts, not a full accounting of all cases and not a causal evaluation of the project’s effectiveness. They do not, by themselves, establish how much activity exists overall or whether the project has reduced it.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How can I report a concern?
If you have information about a crime that is planned or has already been committed, or you are a victim, contact your local or national police. Europol directs members of the public to those authorities for crime reports and victim assistance; do not send a report directly to Europol. Police can contact Europol when appropriate. Europol says it can deal only with information provided by appropriate law-enforcement agencies.
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