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13/10/2015
Man Guilty Of Using Webcams To Spy On People
A 33-year-old man has been found guilty of spying on people through webcams.
Stefan Rigo, 33, of Leeds was arrested on November 2014 as part of an international operation targeting users of software designed to remotely take over, control and steal information from computers.
Rigo used his ex-girlfriend's details to pay for and download the Blackshades malware, a tool which gives the user complete control over target computers, wherever they are in the world.
The software can turn victims' webcams on and off, access banking or other personal information, download new and potentially illegal content, and instruct the victim's computer to help commit acts of criminality such as Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks.
A forensic examination of Rigo's computer equipment found a series of images that involved people engaged in sexual acts over Skype or in front of their computers. Under interview Rigo admitted using functions of Blackshades that enabled him to control others' webcams and monitor their desktops, enabling him to obtain passwords and email content.
On 16 September 2015, Rigo attended Leeds Magistrates Court and was found guilty of voyeurism offences. During his trial he admitted to being addicted to monitoring people via their computers, spending 5 to 12 hours a day doing so over a three year period. He also pled guilty to Computer Misuse Act offences.
At Leeds Magistrates Court Rigo was sentenced to a 40 week suspended sentence, seven years on the sex offenders register, 200 hours of unpaid work and the forfeiture of all his computer equipment.
Angela McKenna, senior investigating officer for the NCA's National Cyber Crime Unit, said: "People using malicious tools like Blackshades can massively violate the privacy of their victims, and use compromised computers to facilitate further crime.
"Users of these tools are continuing to find that despite having no physical contact or interaction with their victims, they can still be identified, tracked down and brought to justice by the NCA and its partners."
(MH/CD)
Stefan Rigo, 33, of Leeds was arrested on November 2014 as part of an international operation targeting users of software designed to remotely take over, control and steal information from computers.
Rigo used his ex-girlfriend's details to pay for and download the Blackshades malware, a tool which gives the user complete control over target computers, wherever they are in the world.
The software can turn victims' webcams on and off, access banking or other personal information, download new and potentially illegal content, and instruct the victim's computer to help commit acts of criminality such as Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks.
A forensic examination of Rigo's computer equipment found a series of images that involved people engaged in sexual acts over Skype or in front of their computers. Under interview Rigo admitted using functions of Blackshades that enabled him to control others' webcams and monitor their desktops, enabling him to obtain passwords and email content.
On 16 September 2015, Rigo attended Leeds Magistrates Court and was found guilty of voyeurism offences. During his trial he admitted to being addicted to monitoring people via their computers, spending 5 to 12 hours a day doing so over a three year period. He also pled guilty to Computer Misuse Act offences.
At Leeds Magistrates Court Rigo was sentenced to a 40 week suspended sentence, seven years on the sex offenders register, 200 hours of unpaid work and the forfeiture of all his computer equipment.
Angela McKenna, senior investigating officer for the NCA's National Cyber Crime Unit, said: "People using malicious tools like Blackshades can massively violate the privacy of their victims, and use compromised computers to facilitate further crime.
"Users of these tools are continuing to find that despite having no physical contact or interaction with their victims, they can still be identified, tracked down and brought to justice by the NCA and its partners."
(MH/CD)
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