GUCCIFER FACES CHARGES OF HACKING

FROM:  U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT 

Friday, April 1, 2016

Romanian National “Guccifer” Extradited to Face Hacking Charges

Marcel Lehel Lazăr, 44, of Arad, Romania, allegedly the hacker “Guccifer,” made his initial appearance today in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia.

Lazăr had been temporarily surrendered from Romania to face U.S. charges relating to unauthorized access of protected computers, announced Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Dana J. Boente of the Eastern District of Virginia, Assistant Director in Charge Paul M. Abbate of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Bill A. Miller of the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Diplomatic Security (DSS) and Special Agent in Charge James M. Murray of the U.S. Secret Service’s Washington Field Office.

“Marcel Lazar is the latest of a dozen high-level cybercriminals who have recently been extradited to face justice in the United States,” said Assistant Attorney General Caldwell.  “Old-fashioned investigative work, enhanced international law enforcement relationships, and a long memory can ensure that foreign-based hackers have no safe haven even in the remote corners of the globe.  As the saying goes, ‘they can run, but they can’t hide.’”

“Mr. Lazar violated the privacy of his victims and thought he could hide behind the anonymity of the Internet,” said U.S. Attorney Boente.  “No matter where they are in the world, those who commit crimes against U.S. citizens will be held accountable for their actions, pursued by our investigators and prosecutors and brought to justice.”

“As a direct result of relentless investigative efforts and cooperation with our international partners, Marcel Lazar, also known as Guccifer, will begin answering for his alleged cyberhacking activities today in the U.S. judicial system,” said Assistant Director in Charge Abbate.  “I commend the dedicated work of the agents, analysts, prosecutors and our federal partners to identify Guccifer, who is alleged to have gained unauthorized access to on-line accounts and violated the privacy of victims, while attempting to hide unsuccessfully behind the anonymity of the Internet.”

In the United States, Lazăr is charged in a nine-count indictment with three counts of wire fraud, three counts of gaining unauthorized access to protected computers, and one count each of aggravated identity theft, cyberstalking and obstruction of justice.  Lazăr's case will be heard before U.S. District Judge James C. Cacheris of the Eastern District of Virginia.

According to the indictment, from December 2012 to January 2014, Lazăr hacked into the email and social media accounts of high-profile victims, including a family member of two former U.S. presidents, a former U.S. Cabinet member, a former member of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff and a former presidential advisor.  After gaining unauthorized access to their accounts, Lazăr publicly released his victims’ private email correspondence, medical and financial information and personal photographs.  The indictment also alleges that in July 2013 and August 2013, Lazar impersonated a victim after compromising the victim’s account.

The charges and allegations contained in an indictment are merely accusations.  The defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

The FBI’s Washington Field Office, the DSS and the U.S. Secret Service are investigating the case with assistance from the Romanian National Police.

Senior Counsels Ryan K. Dickey and Peter V. Roman of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jay V. Prabhu and Maya D. Song of the Eastern District of Virginia are prosecuting the case.  The Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs has provided significant assistance.

U.S. OFFICILS REMARKS AT THE GOOD SOCIETY AND CORRUPTION CONFERENCE

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT 

Remarks at the Good Society and Corruption Conference

Remarks

Hoyt Yee

Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs

Bucharest, Romania

September 9, 2014

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As prepared

I would like to thank the Aspen Institute Romania—and particularly Mircea Geoana—for organizing this impressive gathering of policy-makers, business leaders, thinkers, activists and citizens. In unique formats like this that convene all of society’s stakeholders, we can tackle some of the Euro-Atlantic community’s most complex and intractable challenges.

Corruption is one of these challenges. Combating corruption is as difficult as it is important. In the United States, we know this from our own history. We fight every day to live up to the immortal words written in our Declaration of Independence that “all men are created equal” and as such, all Americans have the self-evident right to equal protection under the law. These ideals are also at the forefront of Romania’s democracy. Romania’s constitution opens with the declaration that this country is “governed by the rule of law, in which human dignity, citizens' rights and freedoms, the free development of human personality, justice and political pluralism represent supreme values…” These democratic values—preserving and defending rule of law, protecting the right to free media, guaranteeing an independent judiciary and providing a clean, accountable and transparent government—are the basis of our Euro-Atlantic community.

Both Americans and Europeans know the corrosive effects that corruption can have on the ability to deliver the prosperity, security and liberty that our citizens deserve. In Central and Eastern Europe and the Balkans—where so much progress has been made in the last 25 years to shore up these common values—corruption remains one of the top obstacles to reaching our dream of completing a Europe whole, free and at peace.

The reasons are simple. Corruption undermines economies, erodes democracies, and threatens security throughout the region. It drains away public resources at a time when every penny is needed to shore up Europe’s economic recovery. Every Euro, Forint, or Leu that is diverted for personal enrichment is one that is not used to help fund hospitals, improve schools, and build roads. Citizens who witness corruption lost faith in their leaders and government. Tax evasion rises. Foreign direct investment is decreases. And many of the most able-bodied and highly-educated workers—doctors, engineers, and scientists—emigrate abroad where their talents are rewarded instead of squandered. Economic growth stagnates or declines. The victims who suffer the most are the most vulnerable. The effects and influence of corruption are so dangerous to economic prosperity that the World Bank has labeled corruption “public enemy number one.”

Now more than ever, we see how corruption threatens not only the economy but security and sovereignty as well. At its worst, corruption hollows out military and border services; allows malevolent coalitions to build across borders in ways that undermine democracy; and enables criminals and hostile states to infiltrate and control strategically important sectors like energy. Today, in view of the crisis in Ukraine, the urgency could not be greater.

So we must ask ourselves: How can we marshal the full force of society, of this unique group of stakeholders—governments, the business community, civil society, the media—in this fight? How can we work together across Europe and Eurasia to root out corruption wherever it hides?

There is no “one size fits all” solution to tackle corruption across the Euro-Atlantic. But one thing is certain: the battle against corruption requires determination of all members of society—from the energy company CEO to the Member of Parliament to the police officer patrolling the night streets. The fight against corruption must rise up locally, build capacity and include citizen “buy-in.” All actors in society must focus on fundamental principles like transparency, rule of law, stable institutions, and efficient courts to enforce democratically promulgated rules. Governments, civil society, business and the media must remain vigilant responsible authorities, including police, prosecutors, and judges implement the law effectively, aggressively and impartially and enforce the principle that no one is above the law.

Our host today, Romania is a good example of a country where the development of strong, independent and impartial judicial institutions, especially organizations like the National Anti-Corruption Directorate, the Supreme Court and the National Integrity Agency, are having a strong, positive effect on rule of law. These institutions have been remarkable in their efforts and need to continue to be resourced, respected, and insulated from outside influence. Romania is poised to advance even further, as it considers ways to ensure full accountability of its elected and government officials and improves the transparency of its legislative procedures—something we are helping with through initiatives like yesterday's Regulatory Impact Assessment Workshop, which the U.S. Government organized supported with the Romanian Government.

The United States stands ready to partner with those in Europe and Eurasia looking to strengthen public institutions, bolster rule of law, and improve the quality of governance. We are identifying the most damaging forms of corruption across the region and the best weapons to fight them. By doing this, we can establish best practices and apply them where corruption festers. Across the region, the United States is working to bring together coalitions of like-minded actors from business, civil society and leaders from the next generation. We are offering legal and technical assistance best suited to local conditions. And we are raising expectations and testing governments that their commitments to clean governance aren’t just about words, but actions.

Looking regionally, we are supporting initiatives like the South Eastern European Law Enforcement Center (SELEC) here in Bucharest and OECD Anti-Corruption Network for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, and the CEELI Institute’s Judicial Integrity Network to provide training and build networks among practitioners and enhance coordination. We are championing the Open Government Partnership and the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative; and advocating that all European states fully implement the UN’s Convention against Corruption.

The United States and the EU are also working together to tackle this transnational challenge. Both sides of the Atlantic have done much. We’ve passed legislation to compel companies to publicly disclose the payments they make to governments in extractive industries such as oil, gas, and minerals, sectors that are particularly vulnerable to corruption. We are working to guarantee that our aid and technical assistance programs in places like Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia and the Balkans emphasize public accountability and responsiveness. We have collaborated closely to build the international architecture to recover proceeds of corruption that kleptocrats stow abroad, through initiatives such as the Ukraine Forum on Asset Recovery. But we can do more. For example, we should look at how to use the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership and other trade agreements to promote anti-corruption measures and cleaner governance.

As Vice President Biden stated here in Bucharest a couple of months ago: “In the 21^st century, the countries that will thrive will be the ones where citizens know their voices are heard because the institutions are transparent.” If we empower those fighting for transparency and accountability with the tools and initiatives to take the fight into their own hands; if we dedicate the political will necessary to wage this fight; if we guarantee the highest standard of governance; then I am confident that the countries of this region and beyond can reach their full potential. Together we can open the next chapter of prosperity, security and human dignity for all our citizens. Thank you.

2 ROMANIAN NATIONALS RECEIVE PRISON TERMS IN PAYMENT CARD DATA THEFT SCHEME

FROM:  U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT 

Wednesday, September 4, 2013
Two Romanian Nationals Sentenced to Prison for Scheme to Steal Payment Card Data

Adrian-Tiberiu Oprea, 29, of Constanta, Romania, and Iulian Dolan, 28, of Craiova, Romania, were sentenced today to serve 15 years and seven years in prison, respectively, for participating in an international, multimillion-dollar scheme to remotely hack into and steal payment card data from hundreds of U.S. merchants’ computers, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney John P. Kacavas of the District of New Hampshire; and Holly Fraumeni, Resident Agent in Charge of the U.S. Secret Service, Manchester, N.H., Resident Office.

On May 7, 2013, Oprea, who was extradited to the United States from Romania, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit computer fraud, one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and two counts of conspiracy to commit access device fraud.  On Sept. 17, 2012, Dolan pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit computer fraud and two counts of conspiracy to commit access device fraud.

 Court documents state that, from approximately 2009 to 2011, Oprea conspired with Dolan and Cezar Butu, 27, of Ploiesti, Romania, to hack into hundreds of computers located in the United States to steal credit, debit and payment account numbers and associated data (collectively “payment card data”) that belonged to U.S. cardholders.

According to court documents, Oprea and Dolan remotely hacked into hundreds of U.S. merchants’ point-of-sale (POS) or “check out” computer systems, where customers’ payment card data was electronically stored.  Specifically, Oprea, who was the leader of the scheme, and Dolan, who was his trusted aide, first used the Internet to identify U.S.-based vulnerable POS systems.  After identifying a vulnerable system, Oprea and Dolan would gain access and install software programs called “keystroke loggers” (or “sniffers”) onto the POS systems.  These programs would record, and then store, all of the data that was keyed into or swiped through the merchants’ POS systems, including customers’ payment card data.

Oprea and Dolan retrieved the card data and then electronically transferred it to various electronic storage locations (“dump sites”) that Oprea had set up.  Oprea later attempted to use the stolen payment card data to make unauthorized charges on, or transfers of funds from, the accounts.  He also attempted to transfer the stolen payment card data to other co-conspirators for them to use in a similar manner.  During the course of the conspiracies, the co-conspirators hacked into several hundred U.S. merchants’ POS systems, including 250 Subway restaurant franchises, and stole payment card data belonging to more than 100,000 U.S. cardholders.  Their criminal conduct caused losses of at least $17.5 million in unauthorized charges and remediation expenses.

 The case was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service, with assistance from the New Hampshire State Police and Romanian authorities.

The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Mona Sedky of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Arnold H. Huftalen of the District of New Hampshire.  Significant assistance was provided by the Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs.