A 20-year-old Florida man has been arrested and imprisoned for his involvement in a $1 million crypto SIM-swap scam. Jordan Persad, along with several co-conspirators, purchased access logs containing victims' email credentials, hijacked their cell phone numbers, and gained unauthorized access to their online crypto accounts. Persad personally made $475,000 from the scheme, and the group defrauded victims of around $1 million in crypto.
The scam took place between March 2021 and September 2022. Investigators were able to recover some of the funds when they executed multiple search warrants at Persad's Orlando home. In one instance, Persad and his co-conspirators gained access to an account of an Arizona resident and stole $28,000 worth of crypto.
In the plea agreement, Persad describes how in one instance the group gained access to an account of an Arizona resident and stole $28,000 dollars worth of crypto. "My co-conspirators and I then divided the stolen cryptocurrency amongst ourselves," Persuad said. The group used an unusual method of gaining access through a SIM swap. Typically, an attempt to assign someone else's SIM to your phone takes place before an attempt is made to hack into other accounts. The attack bears striking similarities to a cybercrime known as Scattered Spider, according to The Register. Scattered Spider is now thought to be working with ransomware as a service outfit BlackCat and earlier this year admitted to being behind cyber attack on Caesars Entertainment and MGM Resorts. The group began its illegal activities last year with SIM swapping and phishing attacks before elevating to ransomware and extortion.
Persad has been sentenced to 30 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. He has also been ordered to pay $945,833 in restitution after pleading guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Computer Fraud. The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the prosecution was handled by the United States Attorney's Office in the District of Arizona.
This case serves as a reminder of the importance of securing personal information and taking precautions to protect online accounts, especially when it comes to cryptocurrencies.
