He also verified the validity of stolen account credentials and assessed whether the stolen financial accounts had enough funds, which they can use for fraudulent transactions.
The Russian cybercriminal illegally held and trafficked more than 200,000 unauthorized access to devices during the course of the botnet conspiracy. In February, he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud.
Bringing cybercriminals to justice
In a statement, DOJ Criminal Division Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian Rabbitt said, “This prosecution and the sentence imposed show the department’s commitment to work with our international and state counterparts to bring cybercriminals to justice no matter where they are located.”
On the other hand, said U.S. Attorney G. Zachary Terwilliger for the Eastern District of Virginia said the convicted Russian cybercriminal “used his programming skills to facilitate the large-scale theft…” He added that his office is “committed to holding these criminals accountable and protecting our communities as cybercrime becomes an ever more prominent threat.”
