College Kid’s Cybercrime Crash Course: From Dorm Room to FBI’s Most Wanted!
PowerSchool coughed up a hefty ransom after a 19-year-old college student hacked their system, accessing data from millions of students and teachers. Despite paying, they weren’t spared further extortion attempts. Moral of the story: never trust a teenager with a keyboard and a ransom note.
Hot Take:
In an ironic twist of fate, it seems like the only subject this college student failed was “How Not to Be a Cybercriminal 101.” While his peers were cramming for finals, he was busy extorting the education sector for a crash course in law enforcement. Clearly, this kid needs a lesson on the real cost of tuition when it comes to cybercrime!
Key Points:
- A 19-year-old student, Matthew D. Lane, admitted guilt in an extortion scheme against PowerSchool.
- Lane managed to compromise PowerSchool’s data, affecting millions of students and teachers.
- PowerSchool paid a ransom to keep the data breach from going public.
- Lane also attempted a failed extortion of a telecom company before targeting PowerSchool.
- If convicted, he faces two to five years in prison and hefty fines.
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