Matthew D. Lane, Cyber Extortion, Massachusetts 2025
College Student Sentenced to Four Years in Prison for Cyber Extortion
A former Assumption University student has been sentenced to four years in prison for hacking into the computer networks of two U.S.-based companies and extorting them for ransoms.
Matthew D. Lane, 20, of Sterling, Mass., was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Margaret R. Guzman on October 14, 2025.
Lane pleaded guilty in June 2024 to cyber extortion conspiracy, cyber extortion, unauthorized access to protected computers, and aggravated identity theft.
Between April and May 2024, Lane agreed with others to extort a $200,000 ransom payment from a telecommunications company by threatening to publicly disseminate data that had previously been stolen from the company's computer network.
He also used stolen login credentials to access the computer network of a software and cloud storage company that served school systems in the United States, Canada, and elsewhere. Lane caused personally identifying information of students and teachers stored on that company's networks to be transferred to a computer server he leased in Ukraine.
Later, the second victim company and others received threats that the names, email addresses, phone numbers, Social Security numbers, dates of birth, medical information, residential addresses, parent and guardian information, and passwords, among other data, of more than 60 million students and 10 million teachers would be 'leaked... worldwide' if the company did not pay a ransom of approximately $2.85 million in Bitcoin.
The U.S. Attorney Leah B. Foley and Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement. The Assumption University Police Department provided valuable assistance.
Lane was sentenced to four years in prison, three years of supervised release, a fine of $25,000, restitution of $14,075,540.58, and forfeiture.
Key Facts
- State: Massachusetts
- Category: Cybercrime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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