Federal prosecutors to offer plea deal to man who allegedly hacked SEC X account in January: report

Federal prosecutors are reportedly planning to offer a plea deal to the man who allegedly hacked the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) X account earlier this year.

Department of Justice (DOJ) says Alabama native Eric Council Jr., 25, allegedly conspired with others to gain unauthorized control of SEC account X and prematurely announce the approval of spot bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded funds (ETF) in the USA.

At a hearing Friday, he pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to commit identity theft and access device fraud, but federal prosecutors also told the judge they planned to offer the Council a plea deal that could include cooperation against his unnamed co-conspirators who Bloomberg is said to have masterminded the scene reports.

The ETF’s fake announcement in January sent Bitcoin up more than $1,000, then down more than $2,000 after the SEC regained control of its X account and declared the announcement unauthorized and the result of a security breach. . Not long after the security incident, the regulator legally gave the green light to spot bitcoin ETFs.

The Ministry of Justice alleges that the Council committed the breach through unauthorized SIM card swapping, which involves fraudulently persuading a mobile operator to reassign another person’s contact number to a SIM card controlled by the attacker. An Alabama man allegedly used the stolen identity of a person who had access to an SEC X account.

X said after the hack that the regulator failed to set up multi-factor authentication (MFA) for its profile, despite SEC Chairman Gary Gensler publicly encouraged last year to protect your financial accounts with this feature.

Don’t miss a beat – Sign up to receive email notifications directly to your inbox.

Check it out Price promotion

Follow us X, Facebook and Telegram

Surfing Hodl Daily Blend

&nbsp

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in The Daily Hodl do not constitute investment advice. Investors should do their due diligence before making any high-risk investments in Bitcoin, cryptocurrency or digital assets. Please note that your transfers and transactions are at your own risk and you are responsible for any losses you may incur. The Daily Hodl does not recommend buying or selling any cryptocurrencies or digital assets, nor is The Daily Hodl an investment advisor. Please note that The Daily Hodl participates in affiliate marketing.

Image courtesy of Midjourney