19-Year-Old Scattered Spider Suspect Extradited to Face U.S. Hacking Charges
Summary: Peter Stokes, 19, a dual U.S. and Estonian citizen accused of belonging to Scattered Spider, was extradited from Finland and appeared in a Chicago federal court on June 30, where a judge ordered him held in custody on charges of conspiracy, computer intrusion, and fraud. Court records identify him by the handle "Bouquet" and describe at least four intrusions starting when he was 16, including a May 2025 breach of a luxury jewelry retailer that copied its data, demanded about $8 million in cryptocurrency, and cost the retailer at least $2 million to clean up after it refused to pay.
Key Takeaway: Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva said the group has been involved in over 100 network intrusions resulting in more than $100 million in ransom payments, and the group's method is talking past a help desk rather than breaking software - so the control that matters is identity verification before a password reset, not the firewall.
Read the original at The Hacker News ↗
- Topics
- Cybercrime & Law Enforcement
- Related
- Gootloader Malware Disrupted After Infecting 25,000 Computers Cyber Risks · Nov 13, 2026354 dark web vendors and buyers arrested in Operation Tor Nado Cyber Risks · Nov 13, 2026Law Enforcement Disrupts Gootloader, CastleRAT, and StealC Infrastructure Cyber Risks · Nov 13, 2026