{"id":55520,"date":"2024-02-15T21:13:40","date_gmt":"2024-02-16T05:13:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=55520"},"modified":"2024-02-15T21:13:40","modified_gmt":"2024-02-16T05:13:40","slug":"ukrainian-guilty-of-role-in-two-separate-malware-schemes-involving-tens-of-millions-of-dollars","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cjnotebook.com\/?p=55520","title":{"rendered":"Ukrainian Guilty of Role in Two Separate Malware Schemes Involving Tens of Millions of Dollars"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"\"Officials announced Thursday that a Ukrainian national pleaded guilty today to his role in two separate and wide-ranging malware schemes involving tens of millions of dollars.fa<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cVyacheslav Igorevich Penchukov was the leader of two prolific malware groups that infected thousands of computers with malicious software. These criminal groups stole millions of dollars from their victims and even attacked a major hospital with ransomware, leaving it unable to provide critical care to patients for over two weeks,\u201d said Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri of the Justice Department\u2019s Criminal Division. \u201cBefore his arrest and extradition to the United States, the defendant was a fugitive on the FBI\u2019s most wanted list for nearly a decade. Today\u2019s guilty pleas should serve as a clear warning: the Justice Department will never stop in its pursuit of cybercriminals.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Penchukov pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit a racketeer-influenced and corrupt organization (RICO) act offense for his leadership role in the \u201cZeus\u201d enterprise, officials stated.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Penchukov (as Andreev) also pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud for his leadership role in the IcedID malware group, officials stated.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"He is scheduled to be sentenced on May 9. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years for each count. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n

According to court documents, Vyacheslav Igorevich Penchukov, also known as Vyacheslav Igoravich Andreev, and Tank, 37, of Donetsk, helped lead a wide-ranging racketeering enterprise and conspiracy that infected thousands of business computers with malicious software known as \u201cZeus\u201d beginning in May 2009. <\/span><\/p>\n

After installing \u201cZeus\u201d without authorization on victims\u2019 computers, the enterprise then used the malicious software to capture bank account information, passwords, personal identification numbers, and similar information necessary to log into online banking accounts. <\/span><\/p>\n

Penchukov and his co-conspirators then falsely represented to banks that they were employees of the victims and authorized to make transfers of funds from the victims\u2019 bank accounts, causing the banks to make unauthorized transfers of funds from the victims\u2019 accounts, resulting in millions of dollars in losses to the victims. <\/span><\/p>\n

\"silhouetteThe enterprise used residents of the United States and elsewhere as \u201cmoney mules\u201d to receive wired funds from victims\u2019 bank accounts into their own bank accounts, who then withdrew and wired funds overseas to accounts controlled by Penchukov\u2019s co-conspirators.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Penchukov was charged with these offenses in the District of Nebraska. Given the severity of the charges in the case and the harm posed to American victims, Penchukov was added to the FBI\u2019s Cyber Most Wanted List.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office for the District of Nebraska, in concert with the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina and the Justice Department\u2019s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, successfully coordinated the prosecution and plea of Penchukov,\u201d said U.S. Attorney Susan T. Lehr for the District of Nebraska. \u201cThis case demonstrates that cybercrime can affect anyone, no matter where they are. It also demonstrates that no matter where the cybercriminals are, the department can and will bring them to justice.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"Despite being added to the FBI\u2019s Cyber Most Wanted List, Penchukov returned to criminal activity by helping lead a conspiracy that infected victim computers with IcedID or Bokbot, a new malware, from at least November 2018 through February 2021. <\/span><\/p>\n

IcedID was a sophisticated form of malicious software that collected and transmitted personal information from victims, including credentials for banking accounts. <\/span><\/p>\n

Penchukov and his co-conspirators used this information to steal from IcedID\u2019s victims. IcedID also provided access to infected computers for other forms of malicious software, including ransomware. <\/span><\/p>\n

One such victim of this ransomware attack was the University of Vermont Medical Center, causing the loss of over $30 million from this victim alone and leaving the medical center unable to provide many critical patient services for over two weeks, creating a risk of death or serious bodily injury to patients. Penchukov was charged with these offenses in the Eastern District of North Carolina.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"redPenchukov was arrested in Switzerland in 2022 and extradited to the United States in 2023.<\/span><\/p>\n

FBI Omaha and Charlotte Field Offices are investigating the case.<\/span><\/p>\n

Assistant Deputy Chief William A. Hall Jr. and Senior Counsels Frank Lin and Ryan K.J. Dickey of the Criminal Division\u2019s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, Assistant U.S. Attorney John E. Higgins for the District of Nebraska, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Brad DeVoe for the Eastern District of North Carolina are prosecuting the case.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Justice Department\u2019s Office of International Affairs worked with the Swiss Federal Office of Justice to secure the arrest and extradition of Penchukov.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Officials announced Thursday that a Ukrainian national pleaded guilty today to his role in two separate and wide-ranging malware schemes involving tens of millions of dollars.fa \u201cVyacheslav Igorevich Penchukov was the leader…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3664,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-55520","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-u-s-department-of-justice"],"yoast_head":"\nUkrainian Guilty of Role in Two Separate Malware Schemes Involving Tens of Millions of Dollars<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Officials announced Thursday that a Ukrainian national pleaded guilty today to his role in two separate and wide-ranging malware schemes involving tens of\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, 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