With a deep understanding of the complexities of the Dark Web, Harper curates informative and thought-provoking content for our readers. Her knowledge of the hidden corners of the internet and cybersecurity helps shed light on the often mysterious and illicit activities that take place in this realm.
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Conor Brian Fitzpatrick, commonly known by his online alias “pompompurin,” was detained by the FBI in March at his Peekskill, New York, residence for hosting one of the most well-known forums for cybercrime, where stolen data was purchased and sold.
Fitzpatrick acknowledged running BreachForums as its chief administrator while being detained. Charges against him included soliciting to sell access devices and conspiring to commit access device fraud. He was also discovered to be in possession of child pornography, a crime punishable by a 20-year sentence.
According to the plea deal, Fitzpatrick intentionally owned about 26 files that showed images of children engaging in sexually explicit behavior.
Cybercrime Hub: $698K Earned, 333K Users
BreachForums was a key player in the exchange of stolen login information, bank account numbers, Social Security numbers, credit card data, and more. While running the website, Fitzpatrick and his group made about $698,714 in total. As of March 7, they were in charge of 888 databases with an astounding 14 billion unique records. The forum had over 333,000 users and before the FBI got involved and closed it down, it was the biggest English-language venue for data breaches.
Fitzpatrick was in charge of designing and maintaining the forum as both its creator and administrator. He assembled a group and registered a large number of domains using fictitious names and proxies.
The dossier revealed certain incidents, such as the selling of private information taken from the healthcare exchange used by Congressmen in Washington, D.C. Fitzpatrick also participated in the sale of tapes showing young people engaging in sexual behavior.
BreachForums was shut down despite assurances that it will be restarted because the new administrator was worried about potential law enforcement eavesdropping.
Fitzpatrick entered a guilty plea, which spares him from further prosecution in the Eastern District of Virginia but does not provide him immunity from prosecution in other states. He must register as a sex offender after being discharged.