Police in 15 different countries conducted an investigation over two years into a credit card scam that led to the arrest of 178 people in the United States and Europe, according to the Christian Science Monitor.

The suspects allegedly cloned over 5,000 credit cards in addition to another 120,000 stolen credit card numbers in Spain alone. Spanish authorities arrested 76 people and brought down six cloning labs. The scam was worth over 20 million euros.

The majority of the raids were made in Romania, France, Italy, Germany, Ireland and the United States, though some arrests were also made in Austrlia, Finland, Greece, Hungary and Sweden.

In addition to credit card theft, some of the detainees also face charges of armed robbery, blackmail, sexual exploitation and money-laundering, according to the news provider.

Instances of identity theft jumped 22 percent in 2008 alone, resulting in a total of 9.9 million cases in the United States, according to Javelin Strategy and Research. This may be in part due to the recent economic crises and high unemployment rates. Those who wish to protect themselves when shopping online should use a secure payment company.