Ryan Collins, 36, Charged with Hacking Apple and Google Email Accounts

LOS ANGELES, California – A Pennsylvania man was charged today with felony computer hacking related to a phishing scheme that gave him illegal access to over 100 Apple and Google email accounts, including those belonging to members of the entertainment industry in Los Angeles.

Ryan Collins, 36, of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, has signed a plea agreement and agreed to plead guilty to a felony violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. In the plea agreement also filed today, Collins agreed to plead guilty to one count of unauthorized access to a protected computer to obtain information.

Although Collins has been charged in Los Angeles, the parties have agreed to transfer the case to Harrisburg in the Middle District of Pennsylvania, near Collins’ home, for the entry of his guilty plea and sentencing. Once he enters the guilty plea, Collins will face a statutory maximum sentence of five years in federal prison. The parties have agreed to recommend a prison term of 18 months, but that recommendation will not be binding on the sentencing judge.

“Today, people store important private information in their online accounts and in their digital devices,” said United States Attorney Eileen M. Decker. “Lawless unauthorized access to such private information is a criminal offense. My Office remains committed to protecting sensitive and personal information from the malicious actions of sophisticated hackers and cyber criminals.”

According to factual basis in the plea agreement, from November 2012 until the beginning of September 2014, Collins engaged in a phishing scheme to obtain usernames and passwords for his victims. He sent emails to victims that appeared to be from Apple or Google and asked victims to provide their usernames and passwords. When the victims responded, Collins then had access to the victims’ email accounts. After illegally accessing the email accounts, Collins obtained personal information including nude photographs and videos, according to his plea agreement.

Many of Collins’ victims were members of the entertainment industry in Los Angeles. By illegally accessing the email accounts, Collins accessed at least 50 iCloud accounts and 72 Gmail accounts, most of which belonged to female celebrities.

“By illegally accessing intimate details of his victims’ personal lives, Mr. Collins violated their privacy and left many to contend with lasting emotional distress, embarrassment and feelings of insecurity,” said David Bowdich, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office. “We continue to see both celebrities and victims from all walks of life suffer the consequences of this crime and strongly encourage users of Internet-connected devices to strengthen passwords and to be skeptical when replying to emails asking for personal information.”

The case against Collins is the product of an ongoing investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Mandatory Facts: Defendant: Ryan Collins; Charges: Felony violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and one count of unauthorized access to a protected computer to obtain information; City and State: Los Angeles, California; Date: November 2012 – September 2014 (crime date); Sentence: Up to 5 years in federal prison with a recommended 18-month sentence; Outcome: Plea agreement signed and agreed to plead guilty; Current Status: Case to be transferred to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania for sentencing.

MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS

Cybercrime

William Kaetz, Publicly Posting Restricted Information, Pennsylvania 2020

Aug 2, 2021

Cybercrime

Izell Mayes, Counterfeit Credit Card Possession, Louisiana 2014

Mar 12, 2015

Cybercrime

Glib Oleksandr Ivanov-Tolpintsev, Conspiring to Traffic in Unauthorized Access Devices, Florida 2022

May 12, 2022

Cybercrime

Anthony Rae, Bomb Threats, Massachusetts 2024

Dec 7, 2016