From Encrypted Chat to In-Game Chats: How Criminals Are Disappearing in Plain Sight
Introduction
For years, law enforcement agencies globally have played catch-up with the digital tactics of organised crime. From intercepting communications on traditional mobile networks to unravelling complex encrypted chat platforms like EncroChat, authorities have made progress in disrupting criminal networks. But as soon as one door closes, another opens, and increasingly, that door looks nothing like an encrypted messaging app.
Today’s most elusive criminals aren’t only hiding in dark corners of the internet, they’re blending into the open, embedding their communications inside seemingly harmless platforms like gaming environments, niche social spaces, and digital ecosystems built for entirely different purposes.
At Trace Intel, we’ve uncovered networks of criminal actors communicating, planning, and coordinating inside digital channels few would consider high risk. These aren’t always the obvious places. And crucially, they’re often outside the scope of standard law enforcement tools and traditional investigative workflows.
The Rise of Obscure Digital Channels
The fall of high-profile encrypted platforms has led many criminals to rethink their communication strategies. With growing awareness that law enforcement is capable of compromising encrypted apps, many are now opting for tools with less oversight and fewer barriers to access.
These platforms, often gaming-related or pseudo-anonymous chat spaces, provide the perfect cover:
Real-time communication via voice or private chat
End-to-end anonymity, without requiring SIM cards or verified IDs
Low perceived risk, because these apps aren’t traditionally monitored
Global reach, enabling international coordination with minimal trace
In some cases, these platforms are designed to delete messages immediately after viewing, or make use of ephemeral handles and invite-only groups that leave little behind for investigators.
The Implications for Law Enforcement
The shift to obscure platforms poses a serious challenge for investigators. Traditional digital forensic techniques, focused on call data records, email headers, or major social platforms, are no longer sufficient on their own. Investigators must now ask:
Where else could communication be happening?
What identifiers (usernames, email addresses, gamer tags) are we overlooking?
How do we preserve and interpret data from platforms designed to vanish it?
Many law enforcement agencies don’t currently have the tools or frameworks to answer these questions confidently. This is where the new investigative frontier lies.
What We’re Seeing at Trace
At Trace Intel, we support agencies by embedding advanced OSINT workflows and tools directly into live investigations. In several cases, we’ve identified networks of individuals communicating across obscure digital platforms, not through a stroke of luck, but by piecing together digital breadcrumbs like usernames, email registrations, linked metadata, and social signals.
When cross-referenced with geolocation data, breach data, and advanced social network mapping, this intelligence paints a far more complete picture of criminal ecosystems operating in plain sight.
These discoveries have led to new leads, identification of POIs, and digital preservation that underpins search warrants, all with intelligence that traditional investigations would likely have missed.
A Call to Action
Criminals are evolving. Law enforcement must evolve faster.
This isn’t just about adding more tools, it’s about rethinking the entire investigative workflow, identifying intelligence gaps early, and knowing how to trace someone’s cyber DNA even when they move through obscure and unconventional platforms.
If law enforcement agencies don’t widen the aperture of where and how they collect digital evidence, they risk missing the modern criminal completely.
Trace Intel was built to bridge that gap.
We help law enforcement track the invisible, preserve what matters, and turn obscure digital signals into courtroom-ready intelligence.