October 18, 2023 at 03:48PM
A hacker in Finland has been charged with over 21,000 counts of extortion for stealing tens of thousands of records from psychotherapy patients. The defendant, Aleksanteri Kivimaki, sought to extort money from the firm overseeing the therapy centers by threatening to leak the records. The trial is set to start on November 13.
Meeting Takeaways:
– The hacker accused of stealing tens of thousands of records from psychotherapy patients in Finland has been charged with over 21,000 counts of extortion.
– The defendant, Aleksanteri Kivimaki, is currently in custody and denying guilt.
– The prosecutor is seeking a seven-year prison sentence for Kivimaki.
– The breach occurred in 2018 at the Finnish firm Vastaamo, where the private treatment records of many patients were stolen.
– Initially, the hacker attempted to extort over 360,000 euros from Vastaamo in exchange for not leaking the records.
– When Vastaamo refused to pay, the hacker began leaking the records to put pressure on the company.
– Kivimaki also sent extortion letters to patients, demanding payments ranging from 200 to 500 euros to prevent the disclosure of their therapy session records.
– Additionally, Kivimaki has been charged with 9,598 counts of dissemination of information infringing on personal privacy.
– He was arrested in the Paris region on February 3 following a European arrest warrant.
– Kivimaki has prior convictions related to cybercrime, fraud, and money laundering, as well as involvement in over 50,700 data breaches in multiple countries.
– The trial is scheduled to start on November 13 and is expected to conclude in February of next year.