JOSEPH JAMES O’CONNOR, a/k/a ‘PlugwalkJoe,’ a U.K. citizen, has been extradited and plead guilty to cybercrime offenses in New York NY, 2023.
According to court documents, O’CONNOR and his co-conspirators perpetrated a scheme to use SIM swaps to conduct cyber intrusions and steal approximately $794,000 worth of cryptocurrency from a Manhattan-based cryptocurrency company between March 2019 and May 2019.
The scheme involved O’CONNOR and his co-conspirators gaining control of a victim’s mobile phone number by linking that number to a subscriber identity module (‘SIM’) card controlled by the threat actors, resulting in the victim’s calls and messages being routed to a malicious unauthorized device controlled by the threat actors.
O’CONNOR was also charged with hacking Twitter, computer intrusions related to takeovers of TikTok and Snapchat user accounts, and cyberstalking two separate victims, including a minor victim.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said: ‘JOSEPH JAMES O’CONNOR, a/k/a ‘PlugwalkJoe,’ used his sophisticated technological abilities for malicious purposes – conducting a complex SIM swap attack to steal large amounts of cryptocurrency, hacking Twitter, conducting computer intrusions to take over social media accounts, and even cyberstalking two victims, including a minor victim.’
Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. said: ‘O’CONNOR’s criminal activities were flagrant and malicious, and his conduct impacted multiple people’s lives. He harassed, threatened, and extorted his victims, causing substantial emotional harm.’
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Key Facts
- State: New York
- Category: Cybercrime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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