FBI IDs Hacker Linked To Stolen Web Credentials

The FBI has identified a hacker known as “mr.grey,” as being possibly linked to the breach of 1.2 billion stolen Web credentials that were discovered in 420,000 websites, Reuters reported.

In court documents filed by the FBI, it notes that the hacker had discussed having access to popular sites like Facebook and Twitter. The hacker was identified last year as being part of the accused Russian crime ring that led to the breach of the personal information.

The documents that were filed in federal court show the progress of the FBI’s probe into the massive data theft. The investigation began last year after Hold Security, a cybersecurity firm, tracked down details about the hacker group known as CyberVor. The hackers were also responsible for stealing more than 500 million email addresses.

Hold Security’s Chief Information Security Officer Alex Holden told Reuters that their investigation has linked his information to the information that was stolen from computers using various malware and virus attacks. The FBI, Facebook and Twitter have refrained from commenting on the matter.

In another similar cybersecurity case, three men were recently charged with running a cybercrime ring that was linked to the theft of personal data from more than 100 million people. The men were indicted in a huge cyberattack that rocked JPMorgan back in 2014, but according to prosecutors their cybercriminal activities include many more well-known victims.

The hackers are being charged with running a criminal enterprise spanning multiple years, which involved stealing the information of more than 100 million customers of at least nine financial and publishing firms. The stolen information was used to drive stock manipulations, illegal online casinos and credit card fraud.

The global network of cybercrime reportedly included illegal online casinos and payments that ran from Israel to the U.S., hitting Cyprus, Azerbaijan and Switzerland.

According to prosecutors, the sophisticated operation began as early as 2007 and ran up until this summer. Gery Shalon, Joshua Samuel Aaron and Ziv Orenstein are listed as the defendants in the indictment and have 23 charges brought against them, which include computer hacking, securities fraud, wire fraud and conspiring to commit money laundering.