Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority
TL;DR
- The hacker believed to be behind the massive AT&T breach has been arrested.
- The culprit appears to have stolen data from as many as 165 companies.
- They are expected to be extradited to the US to face trial.
It was a few months ago, but you may remember the data breach AT&T suffered this earlier year. It was a massive leak that affected almost all of the carrier’s customers. A new report says that the hacker believed to be behind the breach has now been identified and arrested.
Between April 14 and April 25, a hacker managed to download the call and text records of nearly every AT&T customer. The firm reportedly learned of the hack on April 19. AT&T later blamed the breach on a compromised third-party cloud platform. That third-party cloud company goes by the name Snowflake and it was reportedly used to attack as many as 165 companies, including Live Nation, Advanced Auto Parts, and more.
According to 404Media, the malefactor behind all of these attacks goes by the aliases Judische and Waifu. It has been revealed that this individual is a Canadian named Alexander “Connor” Moucka. The outlet reports that Moucka has now been taken into custody. What charges Moucka is facing hasn’t been revealed, but sources close to the matter confirm that Moucka is indeed the culprit behind the Snowflake-related attacks.
Spokesperson for Canada’s Department of Justice, Ian McLeod, said in a statement that Moucka was arrested on October 30 and appeared in court later that day. However, the case was adjourned until November 5, possibly to give the hacker time to prepare a defense while also giving authorities time to gather more evidence.
According to 404Media, Moucka appeared in court today remotely and without a lawyer. “I’ll get one soon, I think,” Moucka reportedly said. It’s expected that the perpetrator will undergo an extradition hearing at a later date and will eventually be exported to the US to face trial.
