College Hacker’s Pricey Lesson: $2.85M Ransom and a Guilty Plea
A 19-year-old college student has pleaded guilty to a massive PowerSchool cyberattack, extorting millions to prevent leaking the personal data of students and teachers. Despite paying a ransom, PowerSchool faced further extortion attempts. The student now faces multiple federal charges, including cyber extortion conspiracy and aggravated identity theft.
Hot Take:
Who knew that a college kid from Worcester could school an entire education company and a telecommunication giant in the art of cybercrime? Matthew D. Lane, proving that sometimes, the pen isn’t mightier than the keyboard. Maybe he should’ve stuck to hacking his grades instead of hacking PowerSchool!
Key Points:
- 19-year-old Matthew D. Lane pleads guilty to cyber extortion and related charges.
- Lane and his crew breached a telecom company, gaining access to PowerSchool credentials.
- Ransom demands went as high as $2.85 million in Bitcoin.
- Even after PowerSchool paid, additional ransom demands were made to school districts.
- Lane faces up to five years in prison for cyber extortion charges.
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