Dutch financial crime investigators (FIOD) have seized 800 servers and arrested two men connected to Stark Industries, a web hosting firm that authorities say provided the backbone for pro-Russian cyberattacks, disinformation campaigns, and sanctions evasion across Europe. The operation took place on May 22, 2026. The two suspects — a 57-year-old company director and a 39-year-old who ran a connected internet-access firm — are accused of indirectly supplying economic resources to Russian and Belarusian entities that are sanctioned by the European Union.
Stark Industries was incorporated on February 10, 2022 — just days before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine — and quickly became a go-to hosting provider for campaigns undermining European democracy, including influence operations and disruptions to public infrastructure. After the EU added Stark Industries to its sanctions list last year, investigators say the hosting infrastructure was quietly transferred to a new Dutch shell company set up to continue operations under a different name. The seizure removes a significant piece of the pro-Russian cyber-enabling network from the internet.