US convicts Russian businessman for hack-and-trade scheme

NBC News reports that Russian businessman Vladislav Klyushin, who owns information technology firm M-13 that has links to the Russian government, was found guilty by the U.S. of conspiracy, wire fraud, and other charges in relation to his involvement in a hack-and-trade scheme that led to the theft of $90 million from U.S. companies. Hundreds of publicly traded firms had their earnings data exfiltrated through computer hacking by Klyushin and his co-conspirators, who then leveraged the information to profit from trades, according to prosecutors. "The jury saw Mr. Klyushin for exactly what he is a cybercriminal and a cheat. He repeatedly gamed the system and finally got caught. Now he is a convicted felon," said U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Rachael Rollins. Klyushin, who could be imprisoned for over 50 years for the charges, will receive his sentence on May 4. Meanwhile, Russian intelligence operative Ivan Ermakov, who was among the perpetrators of the 2016 Democratic National Committee hack, and his other co-conspirators are still at large.