French citizen admits guilt to fraud and severe identity theft

Ready for a proper twist of intrigue? Pull up a chair and let me tell you about a 22-year-old from Epinal, France, who goes by the name Sebastien Raoult. You might also know him by his online alias, Sezyo Kaizen. This lad was nicked in Morocco last year and was sent to the United States in January 2023.

So, what’s his claim to infamy? Well, our lad Sezyo and his mates had dreamed up quite the digital mischief. Picture it: the click-clack of keyboards in the dead of night, faces aglow in the light of their screens as they duped unsuspecting folk into sharing personal login information.

Oh, don’t think for a second that they stopped there. Sebastien and company were quite the prolific hackers, it seems. We’re talking breaking into the systems of various companies, snatching up sensitive customer information left and right. These blokes didn’t discriminate; their targets were from all around the globe, including right here in the U.S.

But it gets spicier. Someone with the moniker ‘ShinyHunters’ decided to get in on the action. He had a fair share of illicit data up for sale, tossing it out like candy at a parade. Turned out, he’d procured these goodies from the exact companies Sezyo and his partners in crime were tearing through. Get this: If the poor company being targeted refused to cough up a ransom, ShinyHunters did not play nice. Out came the threats to spew their pilfered secrets everywhere.

Ready to feel your jaw drop? During the months from April 2020 to July 2021, ShinyHunters sold data lifted from over 60 companies. Sixty!

But there’s more—the paper trail shows that Sebastien was also sharp with web design skills. They crafted these websites to mimic the login pages of real, above-board businesses. Once the trickery was complete, they’d shoot off an email baited with the counterfeit login page and hook, line, and sinker, the employees would bite and share their access details.

Armed now with the logins, Sebastien and his mates would break into these accounts, liberating data along the way and even digging through it for even more ways to access other victims’ accounts. Truly a digital domino effect! The fallout? Hundreds of millions of customer records nicked, with the companies’ losses estimated to be a whopping $6 million.

I know, it’s a lot, right? But you’ve got to appreciate the diligence. Authorities from all corners were on the case—from the FBI Seattle Cyber Task Force to assistant United States Attorney Miriam R. Hinman, everyone was stuck in. Even Moroccan and French officials had their sleeves rolled up, happily lending a hand.

So, moral of the story? The digital world’s a wild place. Identity theft and cybercrime aren’t just storylines from a sci-fi flick—they’re real issues that can cause real chaos. Remember, just because you can’t see what’s lurking behind the screen doesn’t mean it’s not there. Stay savvy, folks.

by Parker Bytes