SEC: Ukrainian hackers' investment fraud ring raked in millions in 'unprecedented' hack

The computer hacking and securities fraud ring that was broken up by US authorities this week was "one of the most intricate and sophisticated trading rings that we have ever seen," the US Securities and Exchange Commission has said. Some 32 people were charged on Monday with offenses related to the scheme, which the SEC …

[cantankerous swineherd]

foreigners jailed for parting fools from their money.

[JLV]

>parting fools from their money.

From the sound of it, I would hazard a guess that their direct customers made off rather handsomely. Investors at large on the other hand...

[Anonymous Coward]

foreigners jailed for parting fools from their money.

Yup. Wall Street allows no competition.

[Anonymous Coward]

Echoes

"At PR Newswire, we take security very seriously and are dedicated to protecting our information and systems," the company said in a statement. "As cybersecurity threats continue to evolve, so will our Information Security practices."

Obviously not well enough. The methods cited have been part of the repertoire for over two decades. And no logs, nor pen-testing, revealed anything at all? Or were you skipping log analyses and those pen-tests, stock in trade for at least a decade? [Leer from Simon as if at some executive vermin, soon to be squashed beneath a pair of size 12 's.]

Some days I actually have sympathy for the (PRC) approach to corporate malfeasace. These days are becoming too frequently of late. Pitiful.

[Urgent request for BOFH icon. Exercising the Nuclear option.]

[Mark 85]

Instead of platitudes maybe felony charges for the C-Suiters...

Complacency in security should be a felony for the C-Suiters, IMO. This was going on for an awful long time for them to say they take security seriously. So either they were complacent or someone was getting paid off to fiddle with logs, etc. and look the other way.

And yes, this goes for Target, Home Depot, Sony, et al, and then there's OPM. The ones at the top of the food chain making the big bucks and bonuses and who's decision is final, should be accountable.

Perhaps a law here or there on this, and then some large personal fines and jail time will change the corporate (and government) views and actions on security. But we all know, the lobbyists and governmental department heads will never let this happen.

Icon... because the C-Suiters are abetting real piracy... and not IP.

[Joe Harrison]

One to bind them all

Why is a group of people suddenly referred to as a "ring" as soon as they get up to something dastardly?

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: One to bind them all

Why is a group of people suddenly referred to as a "ring" as soon as they get up to something dastardly?

1 - looks better in the press (remember, they're foreigners)

2 - vague allusion to what will happen to them in prison?

[Paul Hovnanian]

Re: One to bind them all

"Why is a group of people suddenly referred to as a 'ring'"

Because the term 'Legislature' was already taken. The only people legally alowed to trade on inside financial information in this country.

[asdf]

Re: One to bind them all

>Why is a group of people suddenly referred to as a "ring" as soon as they get up to something dastardly?

Or its called a cartel unless its Google and Apple colluding on suppressing tech worker wages illegally then its just an accident and a slap on the wrist.

[Anonymous Coward]

" they gained access to at least 300,000 non-public press releases."

Surely a non-public press release defeats the object of a press release.

[Anonymous Coward]

??? I really don`t understand..

If the "Newswires" ALREADY had the story how can it be Insider trading????? I would of thought that once a company releases info to a News Wire than by default it would be Public....

Any comments???

[gerryg]

Re: ??? I really don`t understand..

There's a code of conduct in order to co-ordinate the release of financially advantageous information. The press releases are sent out early and embargoed until x o'clock on y day. It's so everyone get the information at the same time in order to prevent the arbitrage of privileged information (a mild version of insider trading but as we see, with similar opportunities)

[Alan Brown]

Re: ??? I really don`t understand..

"It's so everyone get the information at the same time"

And if you believe this is the only example of this kind of thing happening then I have a few bridges I'd like to sell you.

[asdf]

Re: ??? I really don`t understand..

Yep its completely legal (or at least it was) for example to charge a very large fee in order to give key financial data (such as consumer confidence report) to you (or should I say to Goldman's trading algorithms) 2 seconds early.

[Alistair]

And the Banking Industry execs are

Still out there sipping their $7.50/cup latte's and munching on their $8/per pastries in BarStucks.

And are now feeling smug since the SEC caught a bunch of pleb's gaming the systems and put them back where they belong.

<sorry - renegotiating a mortgage this month, my bias is showing, and the grumpy is strong with this one.>

[asdf]

f__k the SEC

Excuse me while I laugh at the memory of once again how big, bad and competent my former company ethics class made the SEC out to be. I was already laughing thinking of Madoff. Funny they didn't cover the subject of regulatory capture.

[Unicornpiss]

Should have followed the old adage...

Not to minimize the crimes committed, but if they were going to do something like this they should have got in, made money, and got out. Would be interesting to know what tipped off investigators too...

[Juan Inamillion]

Re: Should have followed the old adage...

It's called "greed"...

[popsiq]

Just Asking for It

Why are they routing sensitive financial information through internet servers in Ukraine? The Brits are saying, to day that highly sensitive information on nuclear weapons was 'accidentally' routed between the US sources and the British recipient through servers in Ukraine and eastern Europe.