A 19-year-old in Ukraine allegedly hijacked over 610,000 Roblox accounts in an effort to resell them for a fortune.
The suspect and two buddies, ages 21 and 22, stole the Roblox accounts and listed them on a Russian internet area, the place they bought them in trade for cryptocurrency, in response to Ukrainian legislation enforcement. The Workplace of the Prosecutor Basic revealed blurred pictures that seem to point out the suspects being arrested and their computer systems and residences being searched.
(Credit score: Workplace of the Prosecutor Basic)
Investigators say malware was used to assist the hackers hijack the accounts. The Nationwide Police of Ukraine says the trio used social engineering strategies and programming expertise to contaminate sufferer computer systems with a “stealer program.”
The computer virus was disguised as software program that promised bonuses or simpler gameplay. However in actuality, info-stealing malware can steal each passwords and authentication cookies to entry on-line accounts. The Workplace of the Prosecutor Basic particularly flagged the cookie theft because the hijack vector.
“They primarily looked for profiles with collected digital cash or uncommon gaming gadgets,” the workplace added. The scheme seems to have been extraordinarily efficient, stealing the login credentials for 610,000 accounts between October and January.
“In response to preliminary info, the revenue from the sale of accounts throughout your entire interval of the group’s actions may attain almost 10 million UAH (US$228,050),” the prosecutor’s workplace added.
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(Credit score: Workplace of the Prosecutor Basic)
Investigators additionally seized US$35,000 throughout the suspects’ arrest. They now resist 15 years in jail.
Roblox didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark. The gaming platform presently has about 151 million each day energetic customers.
About Our Skilled
Michael Kan
Principal Reporter
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I have been a journalist for over 15 years. I received my begin as a colleges and cities reporter in Kansas Metropolis and joined PCMag in 2017, the place I cowl satellite tv for pc web providers, cybersecurity, PC {hardware}, and extra. I am presently based mostly in San Francisco, however beforehand spent over 5 years in China, protecting the nation’s know-how sector.
Since 2020, I’ve coated the launch and explosive development of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite tv for pc web service, writing 600+ tales on availability and have launches, but in addition the regulatory battles over the enlargement of satellite tv for pc constellations, fights with rival suppliers like AST SpaceMobile and Amazon, and the trouble to increase into satellite-based cell service. I’ve combed via FCC filings for the most recent information and pushed to distant corners of California to check Starlink’s mobile service.
I additionally cowl cyber threats, from ransomware gangs to the emergence of AI-based malware. In 2024 and 2025, the FTC compelled Avast to pay customers $16.5 million for secretly harvesting and promoting their private info to third-party purchasers, as revealed in my joint investigation with Motherboard.
I additionally cowl the PC graphics card market. Pandemic-era shortages led me to camp out in entrance of a Greatest Purchase to get an RTX 3000. I am now following how the AI-driven reminiscence scarcity is impacting your entire shopper electronics market. I am at all times wanting to study extra, so please bounce within the feedback with suggestions and ship me ideas.
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