Andrei Tarasov has an intricate tattoo on his back of a circuitboard. The tattoo is appropriate because technology has played a big part in what he does for a living: cybercrime. Tarasov creates tools others use to steal money and data online. While doing e-crime, Tarasov skimmed across borders, out of his native Russia, a country he extensively criticized, including the country’s war against Ukraine, where Tarasov had friends. This criticism comes back to haunt him when authorities catch up to him, and he’s forced to make difficult choices to keep his freedom.

Participants:

Ashley Jess, Senior Intelligence Analyst, Intel 471

Jeremy Kirk, Executive Editor, Cyber Threat Intelligence, Intel 471

DukeEugene is a Russian hacker, heavily tattooed with a large swastika on his chest. He specializes in developing malicious software for Android phones. The malware is aimed at stealing credentials and data in order to drain its victims’ bank accounts. Despite developing malware, DukeEugene isn’t a very great coder, but he’s well-known and has many connections in the cybercriminal underground – developers, crypters, hosting providers. His business is successful, but he has a big problem. He finds a possible way to solve it but he has to put everything he’s worked for on the line.

Participants:

Simon Williams, Senior Director, Government & Law Enforcement Liaison, Intel 471

Jeremy Kirk, Executive Editor, Cyber Threat Intelligence, Intel 471

Information stealing malware is one of the most common ways that organizations end up infiltrated by malicious hackers. For several years, one type of infostealer called Raccoon Stealer ruled them all. If a computer was infected with Raccoon Stealer, all data – ranging from login credentials, payment card data, cryptocurrency accounts, session tokens – are vacuumed up from the machine and sent off to the hackers. Raccoon Stealer was dead easy to use and didn’t require coding knowledge. This meant that anyone could start stealing data from other people’s computers. It also had great customer service. But the elusive operator of Raccoon made critical mistakes – including a revealing photograph on Instagram – that jeopardized his business and himself.

Participants:

Quentin Bourge, Lead Cybercrime Analyst, Threat Detection & Research Team, Sekoia.io

Jeremy Kirk, Executive Editor, Cyber Threat Intelligence, Intel 471