- Joined
- May 15, 2016
- Messages
- 10,422
- Likes
- 2,620
- Points
- 1,730
The U.S. Department of Justice reports that this week in Virginia, 29-year-old Russian citizen Alexei Burkov admitted his guilt of creating two illegal sites that helped carders steal more than $ 20 million.
Let me remind you that Burkova was extradited to the United States from Israel in the fall of last year. He was detained at Ben Gurion Airport back in 2015 at the request of the American authorities. Over the years, Russian authorities have tried to exchange Alexei Burkov for Israeli citizen Naamu Issahar, who was sentenced in Russia to seven and a half years in prison for allegedly smuggling drugs, but when nothing came of it and the hacker was still handed over to the United States, the Russian embassy in Washington sent a note to the State Department protest.
According to US law enforcement authorities, Burkov managed the Cardplanet website for several years, where bank card information was sold for between $ 2.50 and $ 60 apiece (the cost depended on the type of card, country of origin, availability of the name and address of the card holder, as well as other identification information). Investigators claim that Burkova’s resource even offered a guarantee of a refund if the data of the stolen cards no longer worked.
In total, over 150,000 payment cards were put up for sale on Cardplanet, tens of thousands of which belonged to American users. Selling cards through Cardplanet led to fraudulent purchases, and the damage among US users alone amounted to more than $ 20 million.
Also, according to the Ministry of Justice, Burkov owned another site, closed to the masses, where criminals could advertise the sale of stolen personal data, malvari and various illegal services. To get into this “closed club” was possible only by invitation: three active members of the site had to vouch for the beginner, in addition, the entry fee was $ 5,000, which was a kind of insurance.
Now Burkov pleaded guilty to fraud using electronic means of communication, fraud using data access devices, conspiracy, identity theft, money laundering and confirmed that he managed both of the above resources. The sentencing date for his case is set for May 8, 2020. As a result, Alexei Burkov faces up to 15 years in prison.
Let me remind you that Burkova was extradited to the United States from Israel in the fall of last year. He was detained at Ben Gurion Airport back in 2015 at the request of the American authorities. Over the years, Russian authorities have tried to exchange Alexei Burkov for Israeli citizen Naamu Issahar, who was sentenced in Russia to seven and a half years in prison for allegedly smuggling drugs, but when nothing came of it and the hacker was still handed over to the United States, the Russian embassy in Washington sent a note to the State Department protest.
According to US law enforcement authorities, Burkov managed the Cardplanet website for several years, where bank card information was sold for between $ 2.50 and $ 60 apiece (the cost depended on the type of card, country of origin, availability of the name and address of the card holder, as well as other identification information). Investigators claim that Burkova’s resource even offered a guarantee of a refund if the data of the stolen cards no longer worked.
In total, over 150,000 payment cards were put up for sale on Cardplanet, tens of thousands of which belonged to American users. Selling cards through Cardplanet led to fraudulent purchases, and the damage among US users alone amounted to more than $ 20 million.
Also, according to the Ministry of Justice, Burkov owned another site, closed to the masses, where criminals could advertise the sale of stolen personal data, malvari and various illegal services. To get into this “closed club” was possible only by invitation: three active members of the site had to vouch for the beginner, in addition, the entry fee was $ 5,000, which was a kind of insurance.
Now Burkov pleaded guilty to fraud using electronic means of communication, fraud using data access devices, conspiracy, identity theft, money laundering and confirmed that he managed both of the above resources. The sentencing date for his case is set for May 8, 2020. As a result, Alexei Burkov faces up to 15 years in prison.