A former Yahoo software engineer pleaded guilty to accounts of invading users’ privacy while he was working with the company. The engineer hacked into the accounts of thousands of Yahoo users while looking for sensitive images and videos. The federal prosecutors and court documents confirmed this.
Who is the accuser?
The name of the engineer is Reyes Daniel Ruiz. He is 34 years old and lives in Tracy, California. He has been charged with a single count of computer intrusion. He is facing up to five years in prison and a fine of $250,000. Earlier this year, in February, he was set free on a $200,000 bond pending.
How was Ruiz able to access the accounts?
U.S. Attorney David L. Anderson confirmed in a statement that Ruiz has admitted to his crime. He used his work access to internal Yahoo systems to hack into approximately 6,000 Yahoo accounts. Many of which belong to young women, including his personal friends and work colleagues.
Once he has access to their Yahoo account, Ruiz would hack into the users’ iCloud, DropBox, Gmail, Facebook messages, and other online accounts linked to the Yahoo account. He would actively seek sexual images and videos.
Soon Yahoo caught wind of what Ruiz was doing. However, he destroyed the computer and the hard drive he used to store the sexual content. The indictment was handed up in April of this year in U.S. District Court in San Jose.
The records were originally sealed, and many details about the case were removed from the court record until 30th September. However, this information was uncovered and alleged that Ruiz hacked these accounts in May and June last year.
