Monday, November 29, 2010

Taking-control of People's Webcams

Computer genius jailed for hacking webcams

A computer hacker who used his technological-know how to take control of people’s webcams was sentenced to 18 months in prison today.

Matthew Anderson, aged 33, was an important member of a globally-running gang who abused the skills he picked up from his role as an expert in computer security in order to target both businesses and members of the public with spam that contained hidden viruses.

As well as this, he accessed personal data such as photographs in a highly sophisticated email scam run from his the front room of his mother’s house, and took control of random internet users’ webcams in an attempt to see inside their houses and appointments.

While also boasting at one point to a colleague that he had had a teenage girl in tears with his acts, Anderson also saved webcam images of girls in school uniforms, a newborn baby with its mother in hospital and other intimate pictures, some of which were of a sexual nature.

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