In his exhaustive campaign, Philbert used a remote-access malware program that gave the intruder full control over target computers. Philbert used anonymous email addresses and connections to remote servers to mask his identity in exhaustive phishing schemes. The emails were sent under the false pretext of securing employment, and the attached fake resume contained malware. Once one of the victims opened up the attachment, the embedded malware allowed Philbert access and full control over the target computer. Philbert would then collect banking logins and send email transfers from the victims’ accounts without their knowledge, according to an agreed statement of facts filed in court. In interviews with victims, OPP detectives confirmed around $49,000 was lost in the fraud. In this division of his cybercrime campaign, Philbert targeted a small municipality, family-owned businesses and a private elementary school. The successful OPP investigation also revealed Philbert’s Bitcoin wallet received payment for four different ransomware attacks. In these cases, the target computers were rendered unusable until the victim paid a ransom in cryptocurrency.
Canada’s most prolific cybercriminal targeted police departments, Ronald McDonald House
