Europol Says Criminal Demand for Data is “Skyrocketing”

Europol’s 2025 Internet Organised Crime Assessment highlights that data—particularly credentials and PII—has become the central commodity in cybercrime, fueling extortion, fraud, ransomware, BEC, espionage, and child exploitation. The report describes a service-driven underground economy where initial access brokers and data brokers thrive, with data commonly obtained via social engineering, infostealers, vishing, and vulnerability exploitation, creating a cycle of breaches and account takeovers. Europol advocates “lawful access by design” to E2EE, harmonized metadata access standards, and broad digital literacy, noting a rise in U.S. breach victims to 1.7 billion, while drawing criticism for omitting calls to strengthen corporate security.