An Indiana teenager has been changed as part of an international computer hacking ring that broke into computer networks and stole more than $100 million in intellectual property and other data.
The DOJ claims that from January 2011 to March 2014, Austin Alcala, from McCordsville Indiana, along with three other men hacked into the computer networks of Microsoft Corporation, Epic Games Inc., Valve Corporation, Zombie Studios as well as the U.S. Army.
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Austin Alcala, 18, of McCordsville, Indiana, along with Nathan Leroux, 20, of Bowie, Maryland; Sanadodeh Nesheiwat, 28, of Washington, New Jersey; and David Pokora, 22, of Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, were charged with conspiracies to commit computer fraud, copyright infringement, wire fraud, mail fraud, identity theft and theft of trade secrets. The defendants were also charged with individual counts of aggravated identity theft, unauthorized computer access, copyright infringement and wire fraud.
h/t wish.tv
Authorities said the value of the intellectual property and other data that the defendants stole, as well as the costs associated with the victims’ responses to the conduct, is estimated to range between $100 million and $200 million.
This case is being investigated by the FBI, with assistance from the Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Homeland Security Investigations and Customs and Border Patrol, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.