Two weeks after the massive "hack" of Twitter accounts, and with the FBI involved, the first three suspects are already charged with fraud, computer intrusion, and money laundering. The most recent arrest was that of a 17-year-old teenager in Tampa, Florida, where the FBI and the Secret Service participated in his capture.
As a minor, his identity was not disclosed, but it was stated that he could face up to 30 charges according to prosecutor Andrew Warren at a press conference covered by The Verge. "There is a false belief in the criminal hacking community that attacks like the Twitter hack can be perpetrated anonymously and without consequence," said prosecutor David Anderson, arguing that this is proof that it is not the case.null
Charges have also been filed against Mason Sheppard, 19 years old, a native of the United Kingdom, as well as Nima Fazeli, 22 years old.
He will be tried as an adult
"This is not your ordinary 17-year-old," said prosecutor Warren, when he announced that the suspect would be tried as an adult throughout the process. Through a statement, the prosecutor clarified that this is the case because the charges involve fraud, and Florida law allows minors in that situation to be prosecuted as adults. The attackers sent tweets from 45 Twitter accounts belonging to prominent public figures, such as Bill Gates, Barack Obama, and Elon Musk.
Both Sheppard and Fazeli used their driver's licenses to verify their identity with Coinbase in order to send tweets from the accounts of prominent figures soliciting bitcoin donations. That is how they became traceable.
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});
The scam is estimated to have generated deposits of more than $100,000 according to the Department of Justice.
Source: Xataka, FBI
Leave a Comment
Comments are reviewed before publishing.