Sergei Vovnenko, a Ukranian hacker, pleaded guilty last week in federal court in Newark, New Jersey to aggravated identity theft and conspiracy to commit wire fraud by using more than 13,000 computers to steal log-in information and credit card data.He faces a mandatory sentence of two years in prison and will be sentenced on May 2.
The allegations against Vovnenko are that between September 2010 and August 2012, he participated in a conspiracy to hack computers to steal user names and passwords for bank accounts and steal debit and credit card numbers through a botnet infected with malware known as “Zeus.”
A related story is that Vovnenko was alleged to have been involved in a plot in 2013 to have heroin sent to Brian Krebs’ home, and call police when they arrived to nail the unsuspecting Krebs. Well, I am a big fan of Brian Krebs. Check out his blog Krebs on Security. Krebs followed “Fly,” “secretly gained access to his forum,” and learned about the plot, exposed him, which “likely contributed to his arrest and guilty plea.” One for the good guys.