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The 26-year-old Ukrainian citizen used test accounts to steal gift cards, which he then sold online.
A Seattle district court has sentenced a former Microsoft software engineer to nine years in prison for 18 felonies that caused more than $10 million in property damage to the company.
The defendant, 26-year-old Ukrainian citizen Vladimir kvashuk, first worked as a contractor, and in August 2016 became a full - time employee of Microsoft. The man worked for the company for almost two years before being fired in June 2018. In February 2020, he was charged with five counts of communications fraud, six counts of money laundering, two counts of aggravated identity theft, two counts of filing fake tax refund applications, one count of mail fraud, access fraud, and illegally accessing a secure computer for the purpose of fraud.
According to the US Department of justice, kvashuk participated in testing Microsoft's online trading platforms and used test accounts to steal digital gift certificates, which he then sold online. With the money received in this way, kvashuk purchased a house on the lake shore ($1.6 million) and a Tesla car ($160 thousand).
Initially, the man stole certificates worth $12 thousand, using his own account. However, when the amount of theft exceeded one million, he started using test accounts of his colleagues. Being a good specialist in SOFTWARE development, kvashuk tried to cover his tracks. The attacker used bitcoin mixers to hide the source of money being transferred to his Bank accounts. Thus, for seven months of illegal activity, the man managed to transfer $2.8 million in bitcoins to his accounts. Kvashuk then filed fake tax refund applications, claiming that the bitcoins were given to him by relatives.
In court, kvashuk claimed that he did not want to deceive his employer. According to the defendant, he participated in a Microsoft project designed to bring the company revenue. The court hearing lasted for five days. The jury deliberated for five hours before passing sentence.
A Seattle district court has sentenced a former Microsoft software engineer to nine years in prison for 18 felonies that caused more than $10 million in property damage to the company.
The defendant, 26-year-old Ukrainian citizen Vladimir kvashuk, first worked as a contractor, and in August 2016 became a full - time employee of Microsoft. The man worked for the company for almost two years before being fired in June 2018. In February 2020, he was charged with five counts of communications fraud, six counts of money laundering, two counts of aggravated identity theft, two counts of filing fake tax refund applications, one count of mail fraud, access fraud, and illegally accessing a secure computer for the purpose of fraud.
According to the US Department of justice, kvashuk participated in testing Microsoft's online trading platforms and used test accounts to steal digital gift certificates, which he then sold online. With the money received in this way, kvashuk purchased a house on the lake shore ($1.6 million) and a Tesla car ($160 thousand).
Initially, the man stole certificates worth $12 thousand, using his own account. However, when the amount of theft exceeded one million, he started using test accounts of his colleagues. Being a good specialist in SOFTWARE development, kvashuk tried to cover his tracks. The attacker used bitcoin mixers to hide the source of money being transferred to his Bank accounts. Thus, for seven months of illegal activity, the man managed to transfer $2.8 million in bitcoins to his accounts. Kvashuk then filed fake tax refund applications, claiming that the bitcoins were given to him by relatives.
In court, kvashuk claimed that he did not want to deceive his employer. According to the defendant, he participated in a Microsoft project designed to bring the company revenue. The court hearing lasted for five days. The jury deliberated for five hours before passing sentence.