Close
  • Latest News
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Logo
Logo
  • Latest News
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Home Latest News
    • Blogs
    • Security Watch

    NY Teen Hacks, Infects and Dissects AOL

    By
    Lisa Vaas
    -
    April 28, 2007
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin

      A New York teenager with a grudge has admitted to hacking AOL, getting into its internal networks and databases, planting a Trojan, and spear phishing 60 accounts out of AOL employees and subcontractors—all because “they took away my accounts and wouldn’t give them back.”

      The Manhattan District Attorney’s office has filed charges against 17-year-old Mike Nieves for first-degree computer tampering, second-degree criminal mischief, computer trespass, criminal possession of computer-related material and unauthorized use of a computer. AOL says the trespassing and tinkering have cost the company over $500,000.

      Nieves told the Computer Crime Squad that he not only hacked into AOL because they wouldn’t give him his accounts back, he also accessed their internal accounts and network and used them to try to get his accounts back. He also confessed to sending an employee a bot. When his DSL was turned off, he turned to dial-up, he said, and also posted some photos to show off his work on PhotoBucket.

      Nieves is being charged with hacking into customer billing records, addresses and credit card information between Dec. 24, 2006 to April 7. On Dec. 24 and 26, 2006, he also allegedly infected AOL member service machines in AOL’s New Delhi call center with a bot designed to get those machines to send data from inside AOL to Nieve’s home computer.

      With the information passed on by the zombie machines, Nieves had access to 49 employee accounts. Logged into those accounts, he tried to leverage the account information to get more credentials that would have allowed him to log in to AOL’s customer care tool, which contains sensitive customer information, the complaint charges.

      In February, Nieves tried spear phishing—phishing attempts tailored to the recipient. His scams were called “You’ve Got Pictures” and “AOL Beta.” The spear phishing netted him access to 60 employee and subcontractor accounts. He carried out the scam using AIM accounts, where his screen names included “virus,” “digitsmike,” “illwishmike,” “viruslegacy,” “sckmike,” “tritontestmike” and “testaccmike.”

      AOL nailed him by searching subscriber information attached to the accounts using those screen names. That subscriber information also revealed Nieve’s address and telephone number. AOL also checked out the IP addresses associated with Nieves and the AIM screen names, finding that the IP address 71.249.38.8 was assigned to the computer used by Nieves and associated with the AIM accounts.

      Lisa Vaas
      Lisa Vaas is News Editor/Operations for eWEEK.com and also serves as editor of the Database topic center. Since 1995, she has also been a Webcast news show anchorperson and a reporter covering the IT industry. She has focused on customer relationship management technology, IT salaries and careers, effects of the H1-B visa on the technology workforce, wireless technology, security, and, most recently, databases and the technologies that touch upon them. Her articles have appeared in eWEEK's print edition, on eWEEK.com, and in the startup IT magazine PC Connection. Prior to becoming a journalist, Vaas experienced an array of eye-opening careers, including driving a cab in Boston, photographing cranky babies in shopping malls, selling cameras, typography and computer training. She stopped a hair short of finishing an M.A. in English at the University of Massachusetts in Boston. She earned a B.S. in Communications from Emerson College. She runs two open-mic reading series in Boston and currently keeps bees in her home in Mashpee, Mass.

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Cybersecurity

      Visa’s Michael Jabbara on Cybersecurity and Digital...

      James Maguire - May 17, 2022 0
      I spoke with Michael Jabbara, VP and Global Head of Fraud Services at Visa, about the cybersecurity technology used to ensure the safe transfer...
      Read more
      Big Data and Analytics

      Alteryx’s Suresh Vittal on the Democratization of...

      James Maguire - May 31, 2022 0
      I spoke with Suresh Vittal, Chief Product Officer at Alteryx, about the industry mega-shift toward making data analytics tools accessible to a company’s complete...
      Read more
      Big Data and Analytics

      GoodData CEO Roman Stanek on Business Intelligence...

      James Maguire - May 4, 2022 0
      I spoke with Roman Stanek, CEO of GoodData, about business intelligence, data as a service, and the frustration that many executives have with data...
      Read more
      Applications

      Cisco’s Thimaya Subaiya on Customer Experience in...

      James Maguire - May 10, 2022 0
      I spoke with Thimaya Subaiya, SVP and GM of Global Customer Experience at Cisco, about the factors that create good customer experience – and...
      Read more
      Cloud

      Yotascale CEO Asim Razzaq on Controlling Multicloud...

      James Maguire - May 5, 2022 0
      Asim Razzaq, CEO of Yotascale, provides guidance on understanding—and containing—the complex cost structure of multicloud computing. Among the topics we covered:  As you survey the...
      Read more
      Logo

      eWeek has the latest technology news and analysis, buying guides, and product reviews for IT professionals and technology buyers. The site’s focus is on innovative solutions and covering in-depth technical content. eWeek stays on the cutting edge of technology news and IT trends through interviews and expert analysis. Gain insight from top innovators and thought leaders in the fields of IT, business, enterprise software, startups, and more.

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Advertisers

      Advertise with TechnologyAdvice on eWeek and our other IT-focused platforms.

      Advertise with Us

      Menu

      • About eWeek
      • Subscribe to our Newsletter
      • Latest News

      Our Brands

      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms
      • About
      • Contact
      • Advertise
      • Sitemap
      • California – Do Not Sell My Information

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      © 2021 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.

      Ă—