LOS ANGELES – A Mexican immigrant was jailed for six years in California on Thursday for hacking into computers and “sextorting” women into sending him sexually explicit videos and images.
In what a judge called “cyberterrorism,” Luis Mijangos, 32, hacked into dozens of computers and tapped into microphones to hear users’ private conversations and webcams to watch them while they were unaware.
Mijangos pleaded guilty in March 2011 to computer hacking and wiretapping, using malicious software in one case to hack into a teenage girl’s computer, take control of her webcam and obtain naked photos of her.
Court documents described how he made victims download the malware by sending them files which appeared to be popular songs or videos.
Having taken control of their computers, he would obtain images and videos of female victims and “sextort” them by threatening to post intimate material on the Internet unless they sent him more intimate images and videos.
“We now live in a world gone digital, relying on our personal computers for everything from banking, to learning, to intimate communications with friends and family,” said US Attorney Andre Birotte Jr.
“Mr. Mijangos invaded the sanctity of many personal digital worlds and used intimate content to victimize and prey upon unsuspecting victims,” he added.
As well as stealing financial information, Mijangos “read victims’ emails and IMs, watched them through their webcams, and listened to them through the microphones on their computers.
“Often, he then used the information he obtained to play psychological games with his victims,” the court papers said.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) welcomed the sentence, but said the crimes were part of a worrying trend.
“The sentence imposed on Mr. Mijangos is appropriate based on the chilling impact his behavior had on scores of young women,” said FBI Los Angeles office chief Steven M. Martinez.
“The FBI has seen a rise in similar cases based on the exploitation of emerging technologies by criminals.
“It’s my hope that this sentence serves as a warning for victims of Internet predators to advise law enforcement or a trusted source when threatened, and always refrain from sending compromising photographs via cyberspace.”
Source: Interacksyon
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