Episode #19 – Preventing the Next Roman Seleznev

This Digital Desperados episode explores Roman Seleznev, a hacker who amassed a fortune through stolen credit cards. Born in 1984, Roman's life took a dark turn after his parents divorced when he was young. Tragedy struck again at 17 with his mother's death, followed by his uncle seizing their belongings.

It was at a computer hardware store that Roman's criminal path began – stealing customer credit card information and selling it on the dark web. His hacking skills grew, crafting tools to exploit weak passwords on remote control PCs and pilfering financial data. Targeting Americans brought him to the US authorities' attention. A 2009 attempt to capture him through the FSB (Russian intelligence) likely resulted in a tip-off, allowing Roman to operate under aliases for years. His competitor's arrest in 2010 offered a brief window, but in 2014, US authorities apprehended Roman in the Maldives, possibly with FSB cooperation.

A record-breaking 27-year sentence followed in 2016. Hosts examine the missed chance to steer Roman towards a brighter future and emphasize online safety measures like strong passwords and, of course, a reliable VPN like SaferNet! (https://www.safernet.com/)