Latest news with #BostonDivision
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Yahoo
Worcester university student agrees to plead guilty to extorting companies after hacking them
A Sterling man enrolled at Assumption University in Worcester has agreed to plead guilty to hacking two American companies and extorting them for ransom, United States Attorney Leah Foley's office said. Matthew D. Lane, 19, has agreed to plead guilty to one count each of cyber extortion conspiracy, cyber extortion, unauthorized access to protected computers and aggravated identity theft. A date for his plea hearing has not been scheduled. 'Matthew Lane apparently thought he found a way to get rich quick, but this 19-year-old now stands accused of hiding behind his keyboard to gain unauthorized access to an education software provider to obtain sensitive data which was used in an attempt to extort millions of dollars,' Kimberly Milka, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division, said in a statement from Foley's office. Between April and May 2024, Lane agreed to extort a $200,000 ransom payment from a telecommunications company, Foley's office said. He would threaten them to publicly share customer data that was already stolen from a company's computer network. Once the company asked if the ransom would actually end the threat, Lane replied, 'We are the only ones with a copy of this data now,' Foley's office stated. 'Stop this nonsense [or] your executives and employees will see the same fate ... Make the correct decision and pay the ransom,' Lane said, according to Foley. 'If you keep stalling, it will be leaked. Lane also stole the login credentials to access a different company's computer network, specifically a software and cloud storage company that served school systems across the country, in Canada and elsewhere, Foley's office said. In this second hack, Lane caused personally identifying information (PII), such as names, phone numbers, medical information, Social Security numbers and more, that was stored on that company's networks to be transferred to a computer service he was leasing in Ukraine. Then the second company received threats that the PII of over 60 million students and 10 million teachers would be 'leak[ed]... worldwide' if that company did not pay a ransom of around $2.85 million in Bitcoin. Lane allegedly caused personally identifying information (PII) of students and teachers stored on that company's networks to be transferred to a computer server that Lane leased in Ukraine. 'Members of the public who have questions or concerns as to whether a particular student and/or teacher's information was compromised should contact their local school district,' Foley's office said. 'Cyber extortion is a serious attack on our economy and on all of us,' Foley said in her statement. 'As alleged, this defendant stole private information about millions of children and teachers, imposed substantial financial costs on his victims, and instilled fear in parents that their kids' information had been leaked into the hands of criminals – all to put a notch in his hacking belt. The alleged ransoms that this defendant and others like him demand hurt victim companies and their innocent customers whose data the companies are entrusted to hold." The charges of cyber extortion conspiracy, cyber extortion and unauthorized access to protected computers each provide for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000, or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. The charge of aggravated identity theft provides for a mandatory sentence of two years in prison, consecutive to any sentence imposed on the computer fraud charges. Boston man charged in connection with sexual assault in the North End Police ID Belmont man in connection with hatchet assault in road rage incident Quincy man accused of helping Brockton double fatal shooting suspect evade capture Waltham man found guilty on manslaughter charge in 2023 fatal shooting Teen charged after head-on car crash with school bus in Lunenburg Read the original article on MassLive.
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Yahoo
Former NH credit union employee gets 3 years for defrauding elderly of more than $300K
A federal judge sentenced an Arkansas woman Thursday to three years in prison for stealing more than $300,000 from elderly customers of a New Hampshire credit union, justice officials said. Tyra Brown, 27, of Benton, Arkansas, pleaded guilty Jan. 23 to one count of wire fraud. U.S. District Court Judge Brian Miller sentenced Brown to 36 months of prison time and three years of supervised release. Brown was a customer service representative at the credit union, which was not named in the court documents or in the news release after her sentencing. '(Brown) deliberately abused her position of trust and chose to target elderly account holders, knowing some of whom were unfamiliar with electronic banking,' acting U.S. Attorney Jay McCormack said in a statement. Officials said Brown had access to customers' personal information, security questions and answers and account balances, but that access was only for business purposes, like answering questions while talking to customers over the phone. However, she took $301,674.89 total from at least 10 elderly victims and attempted to steal $428,526.85, justice officials said. According to court documents, Brown used wires, electronic debits and Zelle to transfer the victims' money to other accounts. 'What she did isn't just cowardly, it's cruel,' said James Crowley, acting special agent in charge of the FBI Boston Division.
Yahoo
25-03-2025
- Yahoo
Portland police, FBI announce $10,000 reward for Boston man missing since 2006
Mar. 25—Portland police and the FBI's Boston Division on Tuesday issued a $10,000 reward for information about a Boston man who has been missing for 18 years and was last seen in Portland. Miguel Oliveras was 24 when he went missing around 1 a.m. on Sept. 2, 2006, at the Platinum Plus Club on Riverside Street. He would now be 43 years old, according to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System. There have been no reported sightings or contacts since his disappearance, despite "exhaustive investigative efforts," according to the FBI. "Nothing has changed," Myrna Oliveras, Miguel's mother, said in a written statement. "More frustration, more anger, it has been a long time. I just want to find him and bring him home. I need people to come forward." Myrna Oliveras and other family attended a news conference at Portland police headquarters on Middle Street Tuesday. She appeared somber standing beside police and declined to speak about the case. Resident FBI Agent Christopher Peavey said investigators believe someone knows where Oliveras went after the club and hopes the reward will incentivize someone to come forward. Portland Lt. Nicholas Goodman declined to speak further about the leads detectives have received, but said "positive gains" have been made to locate him. He said he hopes Oliveras is alive, but it is "logical" to believe that he may be deceased. Police have described Oliveras as a Hispanic man with brown eyes who stands approximately 5 feet, 11 inches tall. When he was last seen, Oliveras weighed 160 pounds and had black hair. He also had tattoos on his neck, back, shoulder and hand. Anyone with information about Oliveras is asked to call 207-874-8575 or text "PPDME" and a message to 847411. They can also contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI or submit a tip online at Copy the Story Link We believe it's important to offer commenting on certain stories as a benefit to our readers. At its best, our comments sections can be a productive platform for readers to engage with our journalism, offer thoughts on coverage and issues, and drive conversation in a respectful, solutions-based way. It's a form of open discourse that can be useful to our community, public officials, journalists and others. We do not enable comments on everything — exceptions include most crime stories, and coverage involving personal tragedy or sensitive issues that invite personal attacks instead of thoughtful discussion. You can read more here about our commenting policy and terms of use. More information is also found on our FAQs. Show less
