Money Matters, Simplified.
3 men charged with largest data theft in US
by Neka Sehgal - August 18, 2009 - comments
A gang of three men have been accused of stealing data from millions of credit cards from major retail chains
New Jersey, August 18:In what is being touted by the U.S. Justice Department as “the single largest hacking and identity theft case ever prosecuted” a former Secret Service informant Albert Gonzales and his two accomplices have been charged with allegedly stealing 130 million credit and debit card accounts from major retail chains.
According to the Department of Justice, (DOJ) Gonzalez, 28, of Miami and his two Russian co-workers are accused of hacking the computer network of the New Jersey based Heartland Payment Systems, the sixth largest credit card processor of the nation.
They also managed to penetrate the electronic data of customers at the national convenience store 7-Eleven Inc. and Hannaford Bros. supermarkets.
In addition two more companies were hit whose violations have not been made public.
The modus operandi
According to the prosecutors the scam was slick and sophisticated which began in October 2006. The suspects scanned prospective companies and researched the credit and debit card systems exercised by their victims before hacking the network to steal data.
After recovering the data they would send the information to computer servers they operated in California, Illinois, Latvia, the Netherlands and Ukraine for fraudulent purchases.
The DOJ declared that Gonzales and his partners employed sophisticated methods to evade detection in infiltrating merchandiser networks, including the use of "proxy" computers.
Seasoned hacker
Ralph J. Marra Jr., acting U.S. attorney for the district of New Jersey stated, "This investigation marks the continued success of law enforcement in tracking down cutting-edge hacking schemes committed by hackers working together across the globe."
If found guilty, Gonzales could face a maximum of 20 years in prison for wired fraud conspiracy plus another five years in jail on charges of conspiracy. In addition he could be fined for more than £150,000 for each charge.
Gonzalez who was charged today in New Jersey has been in federal custody since 2008. He is scheduled to go on trial next month for breaching into the computer network of restaurant chain Dave and Buster's.
Other pending charges against him include a case in Boston in 2010 relating to theft of 40-million credit cards from retailers, including TJX Companies, OfficeMax, Boston Market, and Barnes and Noble.