The Latest: Foreign hacker gets 8 years in $55M US scam case
Source: Associated Press
FRIDAY, FEB 10, 2017 01:45 PM EST
A prolific Russian-speaking hacker behind cyberattacks that netted an estimated $55 million has been sentenced to eight years in prison by a U.S. judge.
Turkish national Ercan Findikoglu appeared in a federal courthouse in New York on Friday. His conviction marks an unusual victory for law enforcement officials who pursue such cases. While the authorities have identified hundreds of Russian-speaking hackers, getting them into handcuffs is difficult.
Ex-Secret Service special agent Robert Sica says officials monitor foreign hackers until they travel to a friendly country that will extradite them to the U.S. That’s what happened with Findikoglu, who was arrested in Germany in 2013 and eventually sent to the U.S.
Prosecutors say Findikoglu hacked into credit card processors and then lifted the limit on prepaid credit cards to pocket cash.
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Read more: http://www.salon.com/2017/02/10/the-latest-foreign-hacker-gets-8-years-in-55m-us-scam-case/