Police break brazen computer hacking racket
Officers of Attica police?s electronic crime squad on Tuesday were questioning a 30-year-old man alleged to have led a team of hackers who accessed the electronic files of 110 businesses and threatened the owners of these firms to pay them for protection against electronic assaults in the future.
Police were tipped off by the 27-year-old owner of a firm that offers legitimate protection for the electronic databases of large commercial companies, as two of his customers were among the victims targeted by the hackers.
The 30-year-old suspect is the manager of an information technology firm, according to police who are seeking another five people believed to be his accomplices.
The perpetrators are believed to have demanded 30,000 euros a month from each of the 110 businesses in exchange for protection from future attacks from other hackers. According to police, the perpetrators said they would leak the personal data of thousands of clients to third parties if the businesses refused to pay the protection fee.
The offenders are believed to be members of a group known as Hack 4 Fame which has been linked to several electronic assaults in Greece.
