‘Scattered Spider’ Member ‘Tylerb’ Pleads Guilty
Summary: Tyler Robert Buchanan, a 24-year-old British national and senior member of Scattered Spider, pleaded guilty to wire fraud conspiracy and aggravated identity theft for SMS phishing attacks in summer 2022 that breached at least a dozen major technology companies, including Twilio, LastPass, DoorDash, and Mailchimp. He admitted stealing at least $8 million in virtual currency from U.S. victims and faces a statutory maximum of 22 years, with sentencing set for August 21, 2026.
Why it matters: The group's entry point was not a zero-day but help-desk social engineering and SIM-swap interception of one-time passcodes, and Buchanan's own $8 million admission sits alongside a co-conspirator's $13 million restitution order - a reminder that SMS-based authentication is the asset being harvested.
Read the original at Krebs on Security ↗
- Topics
- Phishing & Social Engineering
- Related
- US disrupts North Korean campaign behind $400 million crypto theft Cyber Risks · Nov 14, 2026North Korea ‘s Crypto Theft Operations: DOJ Seizes $1.2 Billion and Disrupts Hacker Infrastructure Cyber Risks · Nov 13, 2026FBI Says North Korean Hackers Stole Over $400 Million in Crypto Using Deepfake Video Calls Cyber Risks · Nov 13, 2026