Russian Hacker To Plead Guilty In JPMorgan Case

A Russian hacker who perpetrated the financial data theft of over 80 million JPMorgan Chase & Co. clients will plead guilty to the crime later this month, according to a report by Bloomberg.

The hacker, Andrei Tyurin, was extradited from the Republic of Georgia. He has been accused of stealing millions of dollars via the hacking of JPMorgan and others. Tyurin has made a deal with prosecutors and is slated to appear in a plea hearing next week.

The case has been marked by numerous hearings cancellations and back-door discussions, presumably while lawyers tried to work out a deal. On Friday (Sept. 13), a prosecutor filed a motion to consolidate a New York case with a case in Atlanta, in which Tyurin allegedly hacked E*Trade.

Tyurin was originally charged in 2015 and remained at large until he was captured. The hacks were so extensive that authorities suspected it may have been a state-sponsored attack, but eventually they determined it was a large criminal enterprise that also had its hands in gambling, money laundering and stocks.

The supposed leader of the illegal operations, Gery Shalon, was captured in 2015 in Tel Aviv and brought to the United States. He is reportedly cooperating with authorities and has agreed to some deals that would allow authorities to take custody of funds that are hidden in bank accounts in places like Georgia, Switzerland, Luxembourg and Latvia.

It’s not known whether the information provided to the authorities by the two men is particularly valuable, but due to their position as criminals in a Russian organization, it could potentially tease out other leads to spy organizations, cybercriminals or money laundering networks.

Tyurin was extradited last September, according to a release at the time.

“Andrei Tyurin, a Russian national, is alleged to have participated in a global hacking campaign that targeted major financial institutions, brokerage firms, news agencies and other companies. Tyurin’s alleged hacking activities were so prolific, they lay claim to the largest theft of U.S. customer data from a single financial institution in history, accounting for a staggering 80 million-plus victims,” said Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman. “As Americans increasingly turn to online banking, theft of online personal information can cause devastating effects on their financial wellbeing, sometimes taking years to recover. Today’s extradition marks a significant milestone for law enforcement in the fight against cyber intrusions targeting our critical financial institutions.”