Fergie's Tech Blog

Romanian Phisher Sentenced to 8 1/2 Years

Paul Walsh writes in the Star Tribune:

A Romanian immigrant has been sentenced to 8 1/2 years in prison for running a lucrative computerized "phishing" scheme that collected financial records and personal identification from thousands of individuals, including nearly 100 from Minnesota.

Sergiu D. Popa, 23, of Shelby Township, Mich., was sentenced Tuesday in federal court in Minneapolis for a plot that cost his 7,000 or so victims about $700,000, by his own admission.

"Because there were so many victims who were hurt badly, the court believes the sentence is appropriate in order to protect the public," said Judge John Tunheim. "There needs to be a deterrent to others who are trying similar crimes over the Internet."

posted by Fergie @ 5/28/2009 11:41:00 AM