By: Malcolm Preston

Table of contents

• Page 1

• Page 2

• Page 3 Two U.S. Hackers admit to international cyber crime in N.J. Court

• Page 4 Men from Ukraine and New York indicted in U.S. Cybercrime case

• Page 5 Advice column

• Page 6 Crossword puzzle

• Page 7 Trivia section

• Page 8 References

From cyber crime to Canada, target had a very bad year

Six arrested in $45 million global cybercrime scheme

• (Reuters) - Six people were arrested and charged on Monday for participating in a worldwide ATM heist that

stole $45 million from two Middle East banks. The five men and one woman, all residents of the New York

City suburb of Yonkers, were accused of being members of a global cybercrime organization that stole

Mastercard Inc debit-card information, according to an announcement from Loretta Lynch, the U.S. attorney

for the Eastern District of New York.Robert Nardoza, a spokesman for Lynch's office, declined to comment

on where the cybercrime organization is based, saying the investigation was ongoing. The six arrested

Monday were "cashers" in the scheme, withdrawing approximately $2.8 million from more than 140 ATMs in

New York City, according to the U.S. attorney's office. The hackers stole debit card data from the National

Bank of Ras Al-Khaimah in the United Arab Emirates and Bank Muscat in Oman in two attacks in December

2012 and February 2013, according to prosecutors. They broke into payment-processing companies used

by the two banks and raised the balances and withdrawal limits on the cards, prosecutors said. Crews in

more than 20 countries, such as the cell arrested Monday, then withdrew $5 million between December 21

and December 22 and $40 million between February 19 and February 20.Five of the defendants arrested

Monday -- Anthony Diaz, 24; Saul Franjul, 23; Saul Genao, 24; Jaindhi Polanco, 29; and Jose Angeley

Valerio, 25 -- pleaded not guilty in federal court in Brooklyn to conspiracy to commit access device fraud.

Their lawyers were not immediately available for comment. A sixth defendant, Franklyn Ferriera, is expected

to be arraigned on Tuesday. His age and the identity of his lawyer were not immediately available. Each

faces up to 7.5 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000, according to the announcement. Prosecutors

said that days after the February attack, Franjul packed approximately $800,000 in cash into luggage that

was sent by bus to one of the heist's organizers, Alberto Yusi Lajud-Pena.Lajud-Pena, also known as

"Prime" and "Albertico," was murdered April 27 in the Dominican Republic. "After exploiting cyber-

weaknesses in the financial system to steal millions from ATMs, these defendants were packing bags to the

brim with stolen cash, destined for the cybercriminal organizers of these attacks," Lynch said in a statement

on Monday. The arrests came six months after prosecutors in Brooklyn announced charges against eight

others in the scheme, including Lajud-Pena.Four other defendants have pleaded guilty to participating in the

scheme, while three have pleaded not guilty, according to Nardoza.Authorities in Germany arrested two

Dutch citizens in February for their involvement in the scheme after they were caught withdrawing money at

cash machines in Dusseldorf.

From cyber crime to Canada, target had a very bad year

• Target (TGT) doesn’t usually have to promise to do better by its customers, but in 2013 it had to —twice. The data breach during the holiday season led to the theft of about 40 million payment -card numbers and 70 million additional records. And the company launched a troubled move into Canada, its first market outside the U.S. Together, these made for gloomy accounting when Target reported its annual results on Feb. 26. The company’s sales grew by just under 1 percent, to $72.6 billion, while profits fell 34 percent. “We will continue to work tirelessly to win back the confidence of our guests,” said Gregg Steinhafel, the company’s chief executive officer.

• The retailer said the cyber attack led to a 46 percent drop in net profits during the crucial holiday shopping season. The number of transactions for the quarter fell by 5.5 percent—more than during the worst of the recession. Target said the attack has cost $61 million so far, of which insurance will cover about two -thirds. The big expenses are yet to come, though, from civil litigation as well as fines and repayments to banks that suffered credit-card fraud losses. One high estimate puts the total cost to Target at $1 billion.

• The cyber attack wasn’t fully Target’s fault—though the extent to which it is will be determined in the 80 or so civil lawsuits the company faces. The problems in Canada most definitely are. Target opened 124 locations across the country last year, more or less in one fell swoop. Canadians weren’t impressed by the merchandise or the prices, which many perceived to be more expensive than in the company’s U.S. stores. Target reported it lost $941 million there.

• Cyber criminals are tough to outsmart. The Canadians proved to be tough customers, too.

Two U.S. Hackers admit to international cyber crime in N.J. Court

• (Reuters) - Two American men said to belong to an international cyber crime ring admitted hacking into accounts at banks, brokerage firms and government agencies in an attempt to steal some $15 million, New Jersey authorities said on Tuesday. The two were part of a scheme to "cash out" bank accounts and pre-paid debit cards opened in the names of others, said U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman in a statement. Robert Dubuc, 40, of Malden, Massachusetts, and Oleg Pidtergerya, 49, of Brooklyn, New York, pleaded guilty to wire fraud conspiracy, conspiracy to commit access device fraud and identity theft before U.S. District Judge Peter Sheridan in Trenton federal court, Fishman said. Dubuc entered his plea on Tuesday and Pidtergerya did so on Monday, he said. The cyber crime organization was allegedly led by Oleksiy Sharapka and Leonid Yanovitsky of Kiev, Ukraine, he said.

• They have been indicted on similar charges, but are at large. The hackers tapped into accounts in 2012 and 2013 at global financial businesses and institutions - Citibank N.A., JP Morgan Chase Bank N.A., PayPal, TD Ameritrade, the U.S. Department of Defense, TIAA-CREF and others - and diverted money to accounts and debit cards they controlled, Fishman said. They then employed "cash out" operations, using people who would withdraw the stolen funds at ATMs and with fraudulent purchases in New York, Massachusetts, Illinois, Georgia and elsewhere, he said. Pidtergerya and Dubuc admitted sending proceeds of the fraud to Sharapka and Yanovitsky in Ukraine, the prosecutor said. The investigation identified attempts to defraud companies and customers of more than $15 million, he said. Wire fraud conspiracy carries a potential sentence of 20 years in prison, while the other two charges each carry the possibility of five years in prison, as well as heavy fines. Sentencing was scheduled for July 7 for Pidtergerya and July 8 for Dubuc. A total of eight people faced charges in the case, the prosecutor said. The investigation was run by U.S. Secret Service, U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security, the U.S. Department of Defense, the Internal Revenue Service and other agencies.

Men from Ukraine and New York indicted in U.S. Cybercrime case

• (Reuters) - Federal prosecutors on Monday announced the indictment of three men they accuse of being members of an international cybercrime ring that tried to steal at least $15 million by hacking into U.S. customer accounts at 14 financial institutions and the Department of Defense's payroll service. Oleksiy Sharapka, 33, and Leonid Yanovitsky, 39, both of Kiev, Ukraine; and Richard Gundersen, 47, of Brooklyn, New York, were each indicted on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit access device fraud and identity theft, and aggravated identity theft. The men were among eight people charged, according to U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman in New Jersey, who announced the indictments. Fishman said compromised accounts belonged to customers of Aon Hewitt, Automatic Data Processing Inc, Citibank NA, eBay Inc's PayPal, Electronic Payments Inc, E*Trade, Fundtech Holdings LLC, iPayment Inc, JPMorgan Chase Bank NA, Nordstrom Bank, TD Ameritrade, TIAA-CREF, USAA, Veracity Payment Solutions Inc, and the Defense Department's finance and accounting service. Prosecutors accused the men of gaining unauthorized access to networks, diverting customer funds to bank accounts and pre-paid debit cards, employing "cashers" to make ATM withdrawals and fraudulent purchases in Georgia, Illinois, Massachusetts, New York and elsewhere. These conspirators were also accused of using stolen identities to file false tax returns seeking refunds with the Internal Revenue Service.

• The scheme ran from around March 2012, when Sharapka was deported after serving nearly 7-1/2 years in federal prison in Massachusetts, to around June 2013, according to court records. Prosecutors said Sharapka ran the conspiracy with help from Yanovitsky, and Gundersen helped move fraud proceeds. Each faces up to 20 years in prison on the wire fraud conspiracy count. The Ukrainian defendants remain at large, while Gundersen was expected to answer the charge in court at a later date. Gundersen's lawyer did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Charges against one of the other defendants, Ilya Ostapyuk of Brooklyn, were dismissed in September, court records show. The other four defendants either pleaded guilty or still face charges, a spokesman for Fishman said. The case is U.S. v. Sharapka et al, U.S. District Court, District of New Jersey, No. 13-mj-06089. (Corrects fourth paragraph to clarify that customer accounts of 15 firms were allegedly hacked, not 15 computer networks. Adds E*Trade to companies listed in fourth paragraph)

Advice column

• When looking for cyberlaw advice, think about contract law first. For example, your legal rights with Facebook start with the terms of service on their network. Whether you read them or not, when you click "I accept" you have entered into a contract with Facebook that governs your rights, where you can bring a complaint, etc. They may be boring, but should be read carefully before you set up an account with any network, game or online service.

• Consumer protection laws dovetail with user-agreements to provide even more protection. If a network, game, service or website tells you they do something and don't, you may have a consumer protection action. These are typically handled through state, city, provincial and national consumer protection agencies and attorneys general .

• Here Is a quick video for some tips and tricks to keep safe against cyber law: http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=advice%20on%20cyber%20law&source=web&cd=5&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CEwQFjAE&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DjAeJGIlgtvo&ei=AEteU5HVB9fNsQTmxIH4DA&usg=AFQjCNEYP3nvKHHARFjq-ved8umOwnTKXw

Crossword puzzle

Trivia section

• Word Bank

CyberLaw

Protection

Hacking

Computer

Privacy

Information

Jurisdiction

Freedom

Vulnerable

Spamming

Internet

1. This is considered stealing information,

usually from a computer_____________

2. __________Is a global system of

interconnected computer networks

3. You may be___________ to fraud or

copyright

4. Laws, or a specific law, relating to internet

and computer offenses is

called____________

5. Everyone has the right to their

own________, unless it goes against the

law

6. _________ is used mostly in emails to

obtain information

7. It is good to obtain the most ____________

you can to keep safe against CyberLaw

8. ____________ is the official power to make

legal decisions and judgements

References

• http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/11/18/us-usa-crime-cybercrime-

idUSBRE9AH0YZ20131118

• http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/04/01/usa-crime-cybercrime-

idUSL1N0MT23O20140401

• http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/03/18/us-cybercrime-indictments-

idUSBREA2G1KF20140318

• http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-02-26/from-cyber-crime-to-canada-target-

had-a-very-bad-year