U.S. charges five men in Scattered Spider hacking operations
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The Justice Department has charged five men who allegedly participated in the Scattered Spider hacker group that targeted several U.S. corporations.
Why it matters: The group has stolen millions of dollars in cryptocurrency and duped employees across the nation with phishing texts.
- Scattered Spider's attacks have led to massive service disruptions at major companies.
Zoom in: The U.S. Attorney's Office of the Central District of California is charging the four men — Ahmed Hossam Eldin Elbadawy, Noah Michael Urban, Evans Onyeaka Osiebo and Joel Martin Evans — with aggravated identity theft, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit a crime.
- A fifth man, Tyler Robert Buchanan, is located in the United Kingdom and is facing similar charges in the U.S.
- Prosecutors alleged that the five men worked together from at least September 2021 to April 2023 to send phishing texts to company employees to obtain their user credentials and breach a targeted organization.
- This group would dupe employees by claiming their accounts were about to be deactivated and sending them to phishing websites where they'd enter their passwords and two-factor authentication codes.
Catch up quick: Scattered Spider has been tied to several high-profile attacks, including at MGM Resorts and Caesars Entertainment. Some reports estimate the group hit around 100 organizations.
- Other alleged Scattered Spider members have already been arrested in Spain and the United Kingdom.
The intrigue: Rarely are members of malicious hacking gangs based in Western nations where they can be extradited.
- The FBI had struggled to stop the group, despite having their names and knowing they were based in the United States, Reuters reported last year.
What's next: If convicted, each defendant could face a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison just for the wire fraud charges.
- Evans was arrested Tuesday and made his first court appearance in North Carolina Wednesday. Urban is also facing charges in a Florida federal court for a separate fraud case.
