Notorious Hacker PlugwalkJoe Sentenced to Five Years for Cryptocurrency Scam
Joseph O'Connor's Cyber โโCrimes Culminate in Prison and Restitution
Joseph O'Connor, known as PlugwalkJoe in the cybercrime arena, now faces five years in a US correctional facility for defrauding a staggering $794,000 worth of cryptocurrency. The UK native's digital exploits eventually caught up with him in Spain, where he was arrested in July 2021. After his extradition to the United States in April 2023, he pleaded guilty in May to various charges, including computer intrusion conspiracy. , wire fraud conspiracy, and money laundering conspiracy.
O'Connor's big crime unfolded in 2019 when he orchestrated a clever SIM swapping attack against an executive of an undisclosed cryptocurrency exchange. With access to the exchange's computer systems and accounts, he stole a significant amount of cryptocurrency, which he later transferred to an account under his control.
On June 23, the US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York announced O'Connor's sentence, which includes five years in prison and three years of supervised release. In addition, he must return the stolen amount of $794,000.
Notably, O'Connor's crimes extend beyond cryptocurrency scams. He was involved in the infamous Twitter hack in July 2020, where he and his co-conspirators hijacked approximately 130 prominent Twitter accounts, as well as some major accounts on Snapchat and TikTok, using social engineering and SIM swapping tactics. O'Connor even attempted to extort money from a victim on Snapchat by threatening to post private messages.
In addition, O'Connor participated in a series of "swipe attacks", false emergency calls directed at a victim whom he had been stalking and threatening. His activities serve as a stark reminder of the dangers lurking in the digital realm.
