Romanian Hacker Infiltrating Subway Restaurant Systems Gets nearly 2-yrs Prison

A 21-month jail sentence has been announced to 27-yr-old Cezar Butu, a computer attacker from Romania after he admitted to charges he hacked into the systems that processed credit cards in Subway restaurants during 2011. The New Hampshire District Court (NHDC) Judge of USA announced the sentence, thus published scmagazine.com dated January 9, 2013.

On 17th September, 2011, Butu admitted to charges that he connived towards performing access system manipulation.

During that admission, Butu confessed he committed the offence via direct interaction with the Point-of-Sale networks of the victims that was possible because of insecurely-configured computer programs that gave remote access to system administrators who needn't have been before the server. Butu and his accomplices could carry out their crime from their Romanian PCs without leaving their place and still control computers and servers installed at the Subway as well as other business premises within United States. With their remote control, the crooks planted data-logging malicious software that intercepted keystrokes as also seized data straight from their source.

Whenever any victimized customer swiped his credit-card on any POS system infected with malware, there were two instances of his payment data swipe: first by the person at the data-swipe machine while second by the miscreants. There was also remote access malware namely backdoor Trojans that the miscreants planted towards being completely sure about repeat infiltration into the hijacked machines despite increased protection.

Prosecutors stated that Butu and company even tried to sell alternatively give away the filched credit or debit card information bundle to more people who too conspired in the crime. Butu further pleaded guilty to garnering data from payment cards that 140 people-or-so owned, during the hack.

Moreover, Lulian Dolan, an accomplice, admitted to one offence involving conniving to do PC-manipulation as also two offences involving conniving to do access system manipulation. Consequently, he's been sentenced to 7-yrs in jail starting April 4, 2013.

One other accomplice, Adrian-Tiberiu Oprea will face prosecution at the NHDC on 20th February 2013.

Investigators of the crime reportedly included U.S Secret Service in collaboration with NH State Police as also Romanian Directorate of Investigation of Organized Crime and Terrorism.

Related article: Romantic Spam On A Rise

» SPAMfighter News - 1/14/2013