Weekly Cyber Risk Roundup: Uber’s Breach Woes, Major Cybercriminals Prosecuted

Uber was the week’s top trending cybercrime target due to the announcement of a year-old breach that affects 57 million customers and drivers. In addition, the company admitted to paying the hackers $100,000 in an effort to keep the breach out th… Continue reading Weekly Cyber Risk Roundup: Uber’s Breach Woes, Major Cybercriminals Prosecuted

Carding Kingpin Sentenced Again. Yahoo Hacker Pleads Guilty

Roman Seleznev, a Russian man who is already serving a record 27-year sentence in the United States for cybercrime charges, was handed a 14-year sentence this week by a federal judge in Atlanta for his role in a credit card and identity theft conspiracy that prosecutors say netted more than $50 million. Separately, a Canadian national has pleaded guilty to charges of helping to steal more than a billion user account credentials from Yahoo. Continue reading Carding Kingpin Sentenced Again. Yahoo Hacker Pleads Guilty

Famed Russian hacker gets 14 years in prison for $50 million cyberfraud ring

The prolific Russian hacker Roman Seleznev was sentenced to 14 years in prison Thursday for his role in a $50 million cyberfraud ring. This latest sentence follows a 27-year-prison sentence Seleznev received in April on charges of hacking point-of-sale computers that he then sold to the criminal underground. That scheme generated nearly $170 million in fraudulent charges, prosecutors said. Both sentences will run concurrently. Seleznev pleaded guilty and admitted that, as an associate with the Carder.su fraud ring, he trafficked in stolen financial and identity data. He also pleaded guilty to hacking and bank fraud charges. Seleznev is also known by his handle Track2. Before his 2011 arrest, Seleznev lived “an extravagant lifestyle,” American prosecutors said, including owning beachfront properties in Bali, Indonesia and his home in Vladivostok. In a previous jury trial, Seleznev was photographed next to muscle cars with bundles of money at expensive resorts. He was arrested in the Maldives […]

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The Backstory Behind Carder Kingpin Roman Seleznev’s Record 27 Year Prison Sentence

Roman Seleznev, a 32-year-old Russian cybercriminal and prolific credit card thief, was sentenced Friday to 27 years in federal prison. That is a record punishment for hacking violations in the United States and by all accounts one designed to send a message to criminal hackers everywhere. But a close review of the case suggests that Seleznev’s record sentence was severe in large part because the evidence against him was substantial and yet he declined to cooperate with prosecutors prior to his trial.

The son of an influential Russian politician, Seleznev made international headlines in 2014 after he was captured while vacationing in The Maldives, a popular vacation spot for Russians and one that many Russian cybercriminals previously considered to be out of reach for western law enforcement agencies. He was whisked away to Guam briefly before being transported to Washington state to stand trial for computer hacking charges. Continue reading The Backstory Behind Carder Kingpin Roman Seleznev’s Record 27 Year Prison Sentence

The Backstory Behind Carder Kingpin Roman Seleznev’s Record 27 Year Prison Sentence

Roman Seleznev, a 32-year-old Russian cybercriminal and prolific credit card thief, was sentenced Friday to 27 years in federal prison. That is a record punishment for hacking violations in the United States and by all accounts one designed to send a message to criminal hackers everywhere. But a close review of the case suggests that Seleznev’s record sentence was severe in large part because the evidence against him was substantial and yet he declined to cooperate with prosecutors prior to his trial.

The son of an influential Russian politician, Seleznev made international headlines in 2014 after he was captured while vacationing in The Maldives, a popular vacation spot for Russians and one that many Russian cybercriminals previously considered to be out of reach for western law enforcement agencies. He was whisked away to Guam briefly before being transported to Washington state to stand trial for computer hacking charges. Continue reading The Backstory Behind Carder Kingpin Roman Seleznev’s Record 27 Year Prison Sentence

Prolific Russian credit-card hacker gets 27 years

A federal judge in Seattle sentenced prolific Russian hacker Roman Seleznev to 27 years in prison — the longest sentence for computer crime ever imposed in an American court. Prosecutors had asked for 30 years, saying Seleznev had personally helped create the multibillion-dollar market for stolen data, hacking dozens of small businesses and selling millions of sets of credit-card numbers on automated websites authorities likened to an Amazon-type marketplace for cybercriminals. In court Friday, prosecutors compared him to a “Tony Soprano-style mob boss,” according to the Seattle Times. Seleznev, who was seized by U.S. Secret Service agents in the Maldives in July 2014, is the son of Valery Seleznev, an outspoken member of the Russian parliament, a supporter of the ultra-nationalist party of Vladimir Zhirinovsky and a close political ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin. The elder Seleznev and Russian government officials have described the capture as a “kidnapping” — noting that the agents […]

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Prosecutors throw the book at Russian behind credit card hacking plot

U.S. prosecutors are asking a federal court in Seattle to sentence prolific Russian hacker Roman Seleznev to 30 years this week, saying he personally helped create a multibillion-dollar ecosystem for credit card fraud. Calling Seleznev “a pioneer” in the online theft and monetization of card data, a sentencing memorandum claims he “became one of the most revered point-of-sale hackers in the criminal underworld … a market maker whose automated vending sites and tutorials helped grow the market for stolen card data,” by effectively creating an Amazon.com for cyber-thieves and card fraudsters. Cards that Seleznev sold through his sites generated nearly $170 million in fraudulent charges, prosecutors said. “This prosecution is unprecedented. Never before has a criminal engaged in computer fraud of this magnitude been identified, captured, and convicted by an American jury,” prosecutors claim. In arguing for the 30-year sentence, prosecutors also say Seleznev tried to game the court system: “Burning through” six sets of […]

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