Hacker Who Targeted Atlanta Bank Payroll Accounts Sentenced

An Estonian man who was the ringleader of a scheme which used counterfeit payroll debit cards to withdraw millions of dollars from ATMs around the world has been sentenced to prison, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division announced Friday.

Sergei Nicolaevich Tšurikov pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and computer intrusion on Sept. 11, 2012. This week, U.S. District Judge Steve C. Jones sentenced Tšurikov to serve 11 years in prison and a further three years on probation. Tšurikov must also pay $8.4 million in restitution.

In November of 2008, Tšurikov and his associated hacked into the payroll debit card accounts of several Atlanta-based RBS WorldPay customers. The hackers increased the limits on the compromised accounts and then distributed 44 counterfeit payroll debit cards to associates around the world.

The counterfeit cards were used to withdraw $9.4 million from 2,100 ATMs in the United States, Russia, Ukraine, Estonia, Japan, Canada, and other countries. The withdrawals all took place within a 12 hour period.

Tšurikov and his hacking team then tried to destroy evidence of their tampering with the payroll debit card accounts. Once RBS WorldPay discovered the hacks, they immediately notified authorities and have assisted the subsequent investigation.

“A leader of one of the most sophisticated cybercrime rings in the world has been brought to justice and sentenced,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates in a statement.

“In just one day in 2008, an American credit card processor was hacked in perhaps one of the most sophisticated and organized computer fraud attacks ever conducted. Almost exactly one year later, the leaders of this attack were charged. This prosecution was successful because of the efforts of the victim, and unprecedented cooperation from various law enforcement agencies worldwide.”