The month of August saw two federal criminal convictions of individuals involved in significant cyberattacks.

In Boston, a federal jury convicted Martin Gottesfeld of one count of conspiracy to intentionally damage a protected computer and one count of intentional damage to protected computers. The charges resulted from 2014 Distributed Denial of Service (DDOS) attacks on Boston Children’s Hospital and Wayside Youth and Family Support Network. The indictment of Gottesfeld asserted that the damages from the DDOS attack cost Children’s Hospital more than $300,000 in response and mitigation costs, and another $300,000 in lost donations due to the fact that the DDOS attack disabled the Hospital’s fundraising portal. After a seven day trial, the jury returned guilty verdicts on both counts. Sentencing of Mr. Gottesfeld is currently scheduled for November 14 before United States District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton. Gottesfeld faces up to 15 years in prison.

In Atlanta, Georgia, a federal jury convicted Olayinka Olaniyi, a citizen of Nigeria, of one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, one count of computer fraud, and two counts of aggravated identity theft. The charges resulted from a series of fraudulent phishing emails delivered to employees of Georgia Tech and other colleges in the United States which, if opened, allowed the conspirators to obtain the employees’ username and password for the colleges’ computer network and employee payroll system. The stolen usernames and passwords were then used to unlawfully access the colleges’ computer networks to change employee direct deposit bank account information and thereby misdirect employee payroll deposits into accounts controlled by the cybercriminals. After a three-day trial, the jury returned guilty verdicts on all four counts submitted to it. Sentencing of Mr. Olaniyi is currently scheduled for October 22, 2018, before United States District Judge Steve C. Jones. Olaniyi’s co-defendant, Damilola Solomon Ibiwoye, previously pleaded guilty to similar charges and was sentenced in January 2018 to three years three months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release.

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Photo of Dan Sullivan Dan Sullivan

Dan Sullivan has 25 years of experience litigating and trying a diverse range of cases on behalf of corporate and institutional clients. He represents insurance companies in complex insurance coverage and extra-contractual claims litigation. He has been counsel for insurers in significant cases…

Dan Sullivan has 25 years of experience litigating and trying a diverse range of cases on behalf of corporate and institutional clients. He represents insurance companies in complex insurance coverage and extra-contractual claims litigation. He has been counsel for insurers in significant cases arising from the September 11 terrorist attacks, Hurricane Katrina, and catastrophic fires and explosions. He has litigated cases involving losses to residences and businesses arising from mold contamination and construction defects, as well as claims under boiler and machinery and builders risk policies. He currently coordinates coverage advice and litigation regarding claims for damages associated with Chinese-made drywall for a major insurer. He represented a commercial property insurer in litigation involving a $100 million property insurance claim by a publicly traded company for claimed losses arising from an arson fire. He also served as part of the trial team in a multimillion-dollar Hurricane Katrina coverage and bad faith case tried to verdict in federal court in New Orleans, and represented an insurance carrier in coverage litigation initiated by a major Roman Catholic archdiocese seeking coverage for a multimillion-dollar settlement with alleged victims of clergy sexual abuse.

Dan was a member of the adjunct faculty at the University of Connecticut School of Law for ten years, where he developed and taught a graduate-level course in property insurance law. He speaks on insurance and litigation-related issues to bar and industry organizations and provides in-house training sessions to insurance company personnel on coverage issues and trial tactics.

Dan received his J.D., with high honors, from The George Washington University Law School, where he was in the Order of the Coif and his B.A. in history, with distinction, from The George Washington University where he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa.

Read Dan’s rc.com bio.