Joseph James O'Connor, a UK citizen also known as "PlugwalkJoe," has been extradited from Spain and pleaded guilty to several charges related to computer hacking and cyberstalking in the United States. O'Connor was involved in two major cases, one in the Southern District of New York (SDNY) and another in the Northern District of California (NDCA). The Daily HODL
In the SDNY case, O'Connor and his co-conspirators used a SIM swap attack to steal roughly $794,000 worth of cryptocurrency from a Manhattan-based company and subsequently laundered the proceeds. The SIM swap attack allowed the perpetrators to gain control of the victims' mobile phone numbers and use them to gain unauthorized access to their accounts. DOJ Press Release
In the NDCA case, O'Connor was implicated in the July 2020 Twitter hack and further computer intrusions that targeted TikTok and Snapchat user accounts. The Twitter hack involved unauthorized access to administrative tools, enabling control of various Twitter accounts, including those of public figures. O'Connor also cyberstalked two individuals, including a minor, and conducted a series of "swatting" attacks on one victim, falsely reporting serious crimes to police to elicit an emergency response.
O'Connor pleaded guilty to charges including conspiracy to commit computer intrusions, wire fraud, money laundering, making extortive and threatening communications, and stalking. He agreed to forfeit a sum equivalent to the stolen cryptocurrency ($794,012.64) and to compensate his victims. He is scheduled to be sentenced on June 23, 2023.
This blog post was prepared with the assistance of ChatGPT-4 AI. Nothing in this post should be considered legal advice or the creation of an attorney-client relationship. This blog is strictly for informational purposes only.