College Student Pleads Guilty to Developing & Distributing Malware, Faces 10 Years in Prison
A James Madison University Student faces 10 years in prison after guilty plea to distribution of keylogging malware that infected over 16,000 computers.
On Friday Zachery Shames, 21, of Great Falls , pleaded guilty to charges of "aiding and abetting computer intrusion" via development and distribution of keylogging malware.
The malicious software Shames created allowed users to record keystrokes to steal credentials, passwords, and banking information on infected computers. The malware was sold to over 3,000 users and had infected more than 16,000 computers.
In a statement by Dana J. Boente, the U.S. attorney for the eastern district of Virginia, Shames “developed initial versions of his keylogger while attending high school in Northern Virginia, and continued to modify and market the illegal product from his college dorm room.”
Shames faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and will be sentenced on June 16.
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