The ball started rolling when the US Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) reported the possession of sexual abuse images of minors by a man in his 30s living in southwestern France.
The reading of his mobile phone led to the identification of seven discussion groups, eight administrators and three secure storage locations. In this way, approximately 700 people could be identified.
Between November 13 and 17, ten people were arrested in both France and Spain, five in Hungary, four in Belgium and two in Bulgaria. Actions will also follow in Finland, Romania and Ukraine, among others.
A total of 200,000 images were discovered.