Two Former UCM Students Indicted Following University Hacking Spree

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Two former University of Central Missouri (UCM) students were indicted by a federal grand jury in Kansas City for infecting university computers with a trojan and stealing the personal information of thousands.

Joseph A. Camp, 26, and Daniel J. Fowler, 21, of Kansas City, were charged with one count of computer intrusion causing damage, one count of computer intrusion to further a fraud scheme, one count of computer intrusion to obtain information, one count of intercepting electronic communication, and two counts of aggravated identity theft.

According to prosecutors, the two UCM students went on a hacking spree between October and December 2009.

First, they hacked into the UCM restricted computer network, from where they copied large databases containing personal information of thousands of students, alumni and university staff.

They also attempted attempt to transfer UCM funds into their student accounts and tried to modify grades in the system.

But the intrusions did not stop here. According to the indictment, the two students developed a virus and they used it to infect university computers located in public places, like the library or the computer lab.

They also targeted systems belonging to other students by plugging an infected USB stick into them or by sending emails with the malware attached to their owners.

The virus was apparently capable of capturing user keystrokes and gave hackers access to local files, behavior that is consistent with trojans.

In December 2009, Camp offered to sell 90,000 identities stolen from the UCM databases to an individual in New York for $35,000.

When the hackers learned of an ongoing investigation into the hacking incidents they threatened potential witnesses via Facebook.

They also cleaned out the Fowler’s university dorm room, their base of operations, of all computer equipment. When FBI officers executed a search warrant at the location they found a post-it note on a monitor reading "too late!" followed by a smiley face.

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