October 19, 2023 at 06:49PM
Sandu Diaconu, operator of the illegal E-Root marketplace, has been extradited to the U.S. to face a potential 20-year prison sentence for selling access to compromised computers. Diaconu was arrested in the U.K. after authorities seized E-Root’s domains. The U.S. seeks both imprisonment and forfeiture of Diaconu’s criminal proceeds. E-Root offered access to over 350,000 breached systems and facilitated cybercrime activities, including ransomware attacks. Diaconu has not yet pleaded guilty and is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Meeting Notes:
– Sandu Diaconu, the operator of the E-Root marketplace, has been extradited to the U.S. to face a maximum imprisonment penalty of 20 years for selling access to compromised computers.
– The Moldovan defendant was arrested in the U.K. in May 2021 while attempting to flee the country following the authorities’ seizure of E-Root’s domains in late 2020.
– Last month, Diaconu consented to be extradited to the United States for wire fraud, money laundering, computer fraud, and access device fraud.
– The U.S. law enforcement authorities seek forfeiture of criminal proceeds Diaconu made through illegal activities, which are yet to be determined.
– E-Root was an illegal online marketplace that offered access to breached computers worldwide in exchange for cryptocurrency.
– Over 350,000 compromised systems were listed for sale on the market, including computers from various industries and at least one government system in Tampa.
– E-Root provided filtered search tools for buyers to navigate the available offerings based on criteria such as price range, region, ISP, operating system, and access type (RDP or SSH).
– The marketplace operated across a distributed network for resilience and evasion and had protections to hide the real identities of vendors, buyers, and administrators.
– E-Root also operated a dedicated cryptocurrency exchange service for users to convert between Bitcoin and Perfect Money.
– The U.S. Department of Justice reveals that access purchased through E-Root was used for cybercrime activities, including ransomware attacks and stolen identity tax fraud schemes.
– Diaconu has not yet pleaded guilty to the charges outlined in the indictment and is presumed innocent until proven guilty.