Internet Extortion

A computer hacker did more than steal credit card information from victims: FBI computer forensics experts found evidence of computer hacking, video voyeurism, and identity theft by Luis Mijangos. Mijangos infected other computers by using files encoded with malicious software disguised as music files. Once he could retrieve personal information, he accessed contact lists and sent those people malware. He would also search files for explicit photos or videos of the user. The police affidavit further explains that Mijangos would then tell the victims that unless they sent him more explicit material of themselves he would distribute the images and videos he was able to collect to the people in their contact list. Mijangos explains that he was requesting the information because husbands or boyfriends of the victims were trying to determine if the victims were being unfaithful. See Penal Code Sections 518, 530.5, 530.6.