FBI: Twin Brothers from Springfield Face Decades in Prison for Computer Hacking, More

PHOTO of brothers Muneeb and Sohaib Akhter from wardensystems.com

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Just a few years ago, twin brothers from Springfield Muneeb and Sohaib Akhter were being hailed for their educational genius — graduating from George Mason University with engineering degrees when both were just 19 years old.

The Washington Post said in 2011: “I think we’ll be hearing more about these guys.”

Obviously, no one at the time was thinking the news would be about criminal activity.

Four years later, both now 23 years old, the twins pleaded guilty last week to charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to access a protected computer without authorization, and conspiracy to access a government computer without authorization, according to a news release from the FBI.

Muneeb Akhter also pleaded guilty to additional charges of accessing a protected computer without authorization, making a false statement, and obstructing justice, the FBI said.

In March 2014, Muneeb Akhter hacked into the website of a cosmetics company and stole thousands of its customers’ credit card and personal information, according to the FBI.

The Akhter brothers and co-conspirators used the stolen information to purchase goods and services, including flights, hotel reservations, and attendance at professional conferences. Muneeb Akhter also provided stolen information to an individual he met on the “dark net,” who sold the information to other dark-net users and gave Akhter a share of the profits, the FBI noted.

In a separate scheme, the Akhter brothers and co-conspirators engaged in a series of computer intrusions and attempted computer intrusions against the U.S. Department of State to obtain sensitive passport and visa information and other related and valuable information about State Department computer systems, the FBI said.

In or around February 2015, Sohaib Akhter used his contract position at the State Department to access sensitive computer systems containing personally identifiable information belonging to dozens of co-workers, acquaintances, a former employer, and a federal law enforcement agent investigating his crimes, the FBI noted.

Sohaib Akhter later devised a scheme to ensure that he could maintain perpetual access to desired State Department systems, the FBI said. Sohaib Akhter, with the help of Muneeb Akhter and co-conspirators, attempted to secretly install an electronic collection device inside a State Department building, according to the FBI. Once installed, the device could have enabled Sohaib Akhter and co-conspirators to remotely access and collect data from State Department computer systems. Sohaib Akhter was forced to abandon the plan during its execution when he broke the device while attempting to install it behind a wall at a State Department facility in Washington, D.C., the FBI said.

In November 2013, Muneeb Akhter was performing contract work for a private data aggregation company located in Rockville. He hacked into the company’s database of federal contract information so that he and his brother could use the information to tailor successful bids to win contracts and clients for their own technology company, the FBI said. Muneeb Akhter also inserted codes onto the victim company’s servers that caused them to vote for Akhter in an online contest and send more than 10,000 mass e-mails to students at George Mason University, also for the purpose of garnering contest votes, according to the FBI.

In October 2014, Muneeb Akhter lied about his hacking activities and employment history on a government background investigation form prior to successfully obtaining a position with a defense contractor, the FBI said. In March 2015, after his arrest and release pending trial, Muneeb Akhter obstructed justice by endeavoring to isolate a key co-conspirator from law enforcement officers investigating the conspirators’ crimes, the FBI said. Among other acts, Muneeb Akhter drove the co-conspirator to the airport and purchased a boarding pass, which the co-conspirator used to travel out of the country to the Republic of Malta. When the co-conspirator returned to the United States, Muneeb Akhter continued to encourage the co-conspirator to avoid law enforcement agents, the FBI said.

The Akhter twins were indicted by a federal grand jury on April 30. Muneeb Akhter faces a maximum penalty of 50 years in prison, while Sohaib Akhter faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison. Both men will be sentenced on Sept. 25, the FBI said.