Interpol stated that the operation was prompted by an observed increase in attacked referred to as vishing (voice phishing) in which criminals pretend to be bank officials in order to gain online account log-in details from targets. The FBI and CISA warned of an increase in this type of attack in 2020, and it has continued to gain traction. The Interpol operation occurred between March 8 and May 8 and has been codenamed First Light 2022. According to Interpol, 76 countries participated in the crackdown to bring down social engineering scams that often target vulnerable populations, such as the elderly. The raids took place at call centers suspected of operating these scams, including telephone deception, romance scams, and connected financial crimes.