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Sales, extortion, fraud - Sandu Diaconu's activities are on the surface.
Sandu Diaconu, who runs the illegal online marketplace E-Root, has been extradited to the United States for his upcoming trial, where he faces a maximum prison sentence of 20 years for selling access to compromised computers.
Diaconu, a Moldovan citizen, was arrested in the UK in May 2021 while trying to leave the country after authorities confiscated E-Root domains in late 2020.
Last month, Diaconu agreed to be extradited to the United States on charges of wire fraud, money laundering, computer fraud and wire fraud.
In addition to imprisonment, US law enforcement agencies are demanding the confiscation of criminal proceeds received by Diacon as a result of illegal activities, the amount of which has yet to be determined.
About the E-Root Market
E-Root was an illegal marketplace that offered access to hacked computers around the world in exchange for cryptocurrency. Data obtained during the investigation shows that more than 350,000 compromised systems were offered for sale on the market, including computers from numerous industries, as well as at least one government system in Tampa.
Shoppers were given tools to search through available deals using various criteria such as price range, region, internet provider, operating system, RDP or SSH access, and many others.
E-Root operated on a widely distributed network to ensure resilience and evasion, using security techniques to hide the true identities of sellers, buyers, and administrators.
The market also served a specialized cryptocurrency exchange, allowing users to convert Bitcoin into Perfect Money, a legitimate electronic transaction service.
According to the US Department of Justice, there has been multiple evidence that access purchased through E-Root has been used for cybercriminal activity, including ransomware attacks.
The US Department of Justice said many victims were targeted with ransomware, and some of the stolen credentials on the market were linked to stolen tax data fraud schemes.
Diaconu has not yet pleaded guilty to the charges and is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
__________________
Sandu Diaconu, who runs the illegal online marketplace E-Root, has been extradited to the United States for his upcoming trial, where he faces a maximum prison sentence of 20 years for selling access to compromised computers.
Diaconu, a Moldovan citizen, was arrested in the UK in May 2021 while trying to leave the country after authorities confiscated E-Root domains in late 2020.
Last month, Diaconu agreed to be extradited to the United States on charges of wire fraud, money laundering, computer fraud and wire fraud.
In addition to imprisonment, US law enforcement agencies are demanding the confiscation of criminal proceeds received by Diacon as a result of illegal activities, the amount of which has yet to be determined.
About the E-Root Market
E-Root was an illegal marketplace that offered access to hacked computers around the world in exchange for cryptocurrency. Data obtained during the investigation shows that more than 350,000 compromised systems were offered for sale on the market, including computers from numerous industries, as well as at least one government system in Tampa.
Shoppers were given tools to search through available deals using various criteria such as price range, region, internet provider, operating system, RDP or SSH access, and many others.
E-Root operated on a widely distributed network to ensure resilience and evasion, using security techniques to hide the true identities of sellers, buyers, and administrators.
The market also served a specialized cryptocurrency exchange, allowing users to convert Bitcoin into Perfect Money, a legitimate electronic transaction service.
According to the US Department of Justice, there has been multiple evidence that access purchased through E-Root has been used for cybercriminal activity, including ransomware attacks.
The US Department of Justice said many victims were targeted with ransomware, and some of the stolen credentials on the market were linked to stolen tax data fraud schemes.
Diaconu has not yet pleaded guilty to the charges and is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
__________________