Teecht. International Hacker-For-Hire Who Conspired Alongside In Addition To Aided Russian Fsb Officers Sentenced To Lx Months Inwards Prison

Russian fficers Tasked Prolific Hacker-for-Hire to Target Webmail Accounts

Karim Baratov, aka Kay, aka Karim Taloverov, aka Karim Akehmet Tokbergenov, 23, was sentenced to 5 years inward prison theatre in addition to ordered to pay a fine, which encompasses all of his remaining assets.

Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers, Acting U.S. Attorney Alex G. Tse for the Northern District of California, in addition to Special Agent inward Charge John F. Bennett of the FBI’s San Francisco Field Office made the announcement.  The judgement was handed downwardly today past times U.S. District Judge the Honorable Vince Chhabria.

“Criminal hackers in addition to the countries that sponsor them brand a grave error when they target American companies in addition to citizens.  We volition position them wherever they are in addition to convey them to justice,” said Assistant Attorney General Demers.  “I would similar to give cheers Canadian constabulary enforcement government for their tremendous assistance inward bringing Baratov to justice.  We volition boot the bucket along to function alongside our unusual partners to detect in addition to prosecute those who would violate our laws.”

“The judgement imposed reflects the seriousness of hacking for hire,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Tse.  “Hackers such every bit Baratov ply their merchandise without regard for the criminal objectives of the people who hire in addition to pay them.  These hackers are non child players; they are a critical tool used past times criminals to obtain in addition to exploit personal data illegally.  In sentencing Baratov to 5 years inward prison, the Court sent a clear message to hackers that participating inward cyber attacks sponsored past times patch states volition termination inward pregnant consequences.”

“It's hard to overstate the unprecedented nature of this conspiracy, inward which members of a unusual tidings service directed in addition to empowered criminal hackers to acquit a massive cyber-attack against 500 meg victim user accounts,” said Special Agent inward Charge Bennett.  “Today's sentencing demonstrates the FBI's unwavering commitment to disrupt in addition to prosecute malicious cyber actors despite their attempts to conceal their identities in addition to shroud from justice.”

Baratov, a Canadian national in addition to resident, in addition to 3 other defendants, including 2 officers of the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB), Russia’s domestic constabulary enforcement in addition to tidings service, were charged alongside a pose out of offenses relating to the hacking of webmail accounts at Yahoo in addition to other service providers.  In particular, the defendants were charged inward a reckoner hacking conspiracy inward which the 2 Russian FSB officers hired criminal hackers to collect data through reckoner intrusions inward the USA in addition to abroad, which resulted inward the unauthorized access of Yahoo’s network in addition to the pike phishing of webmail accounts at other service providers betwixt Jan 2014 in addition to Dec 2016.

Baratov’s exercise inward the charged conspiracy was to hack webmail accounts of individuals of involvement to his coconspirator who was working for the FSB in addition to ship those accounts’ passwords to Dokuchaev inward central for money.

The Indictment is available here, in addition to its allegations are summarized inward greater item inward the press liberate that attended the unsealing of the Indictment on March 15, 2017.

Baratov has been detained since his arrest inward Canada inward March 2017.  Baratov waived extradition to the USA in addition to was transferred to the Northern District of California inward August 2017.  In Nov 2017, Baratov pleaded guilty to Count One in addition to Counts Forty through Forty-Seven of the Indictment.  Count One charged Baratov, Dokuchaev, Sushchin in addition to Belan alongside conspiring to violate the Computer Fraud in addition to Abuse Act past times stealing data from protected computers in addition to causing harm to protected computers.  Counts Forty through Forty-Seven charged Baratov in addition to Dokuchaev alongside aggravated identity theft.  As constituent of his plea agreement, Baratov non exclusively admitted to agreeing in addition to attempting to hack at to the lowest degree lxxx webmail accounts on behalf of 1 of his FSB co-conspirators, but also to hacking to a greater extent than than 11,000 webmail accounts inward full from inward or some 2010 until his March 2017 arrest past times Canadian authorities.  In add-on to whatever prison theatre sentence, Baratov agreed to pay restitution to his victims, in addition to to pay a fine upward to $2,250,000, at $250,000 per count, alongside whatever assets he has remaining later satisfying a restitution award.

The FBI, led past times the San Francisco Field Office, conducted the investigation that resulted inward the charges inward the Indictment.  The instance is beingness prosecuted past times the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California in addition to the U.S. Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterintelligence in addition to Export Control Section, alongside back upward from the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs.