Capital One Hacker Stole 'Terabytes' of Data From More Than 30 Companies, Court Docs Reveal

Paige A. Thompson, the hacker accused of breaching US bank Capital One, is also believed to have stolen data from more than 30 other companies, US prosecutors said in new court documents filed today and obtained by ZDNet. From the report: "The government's investigation over the last two weeks has revealed that Thompson's theft of Capital One's data was only one part of her criminal conduct," US officials said in a memorandum for extending Thompson's detention period. "The servers seized from Thompson's bedroom during the search of Thompson's residence, include not only data stolen from Capital One, but also multiple terabytes of data stolen by Thompson from more than 30 other companies, educational institutions, and other entities." US prosecutors said the "data varies significantly in both type and amount," but, based on currently available information, "much of the data appears not to be data containing personal identifying information."

Whatâ(TM)s the issue?

[ravib123]

If it wasnâ(TM)t sold or used anywhere what damages actually exist?

Re:

[ArchieBunker]

If this person was able to access the data then others might have too. Also see the CFAA.

If it wasn't and Paige can prove so. She said she

[raymorris]

If Paige Thompson didn't share the data with anyone, didn't plan to, and can prove that, it will be good for her defense. The evidence isn't looking great on that.

We know for sure that she posted detailed metadata publicly. We know she said she was in the middle of doing something that would have her put away for a long time, which was okay because she had already decided to try to get herself committed to a mental institution before. That suggests she may have been planning to sell or post it all. We kn

Re:

[lrichardson]

The US government also noted that Thompson's past behavior appears to be related to "a significant history of mental health problems."

Yeah, I suspect the standard "OMG, COMPUTER HACKER!!! LOCK THEM UP" may quietly transition, without much media fanfare, into an extended stay at a secure mental health facility

Let her stay at mental health facility already...

[Anonymous Coward]

They should have already let her stay at a mental health facility back when "Paige" cut her dick off to become female. I mean, seriously, WTF? Who does something like that without some serious mental health issues going on?

Which ISO did he use?

[nospam007]

I would like one who allows me terabytes of downloads.

Re:

[nospam007]

ISP obviously, if my fat fingers didn't intervene.

Re:

[Annoymous Coward]

Comcast lets you download 1TB per month before they start charging extra... Should be plenty if you do the pull slowly over time.

Re:

[mandark1967]

35.110 one would presume.

Re:Which ISO did he use?

[Tablizer]

Put all hackers on Comcast to slow their hacks.

Re:

[Cederic]

Mine gets a bit cranky if I download more than three terabytes in a day. But I don't live in a country with good internet.

1, 2, 3...

[Tablizer]

So they breached Capital One through Capital Thirty One.

Capital Thirty Two is sweating right now.

Re:

[sconeu]

Would that be 31 flavors of hack?

Baskin-Robbins is probably quaking in their boots.

For someone so smart, dumb as dirt

[pgmrdlm]

This is how this dumb ass got caught.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/rachelsandler/2019/07/29/capital-one-says-hacker-breached-accounts-of-100-million-people-ex-amazon-employee-arrested/#5b04cad541d2/ [forbes.com]

"Thompson allegedly posted the information from the hack on her Github profile, which included a link to her résumé, leading the FBI to her. Github is an online service that allows users to upload and store code. "

Seriously, your smart enough to hack and steal that much data. And y

Re:

[JeffOwl]

Thompson either didn't care about getting caught or specifically wanted to be caught.

Re:

[pgmrdlm]

Yea, ok. I thought that also, but damn.

Re:

[mschuyler]

She just wants to go to jail so the state is forced to pay for her operation.

Re:

[clovis]

So this is a case of suicide by CFAA.

Slashdot encoding

[twocows]

Do you think her rA(c)sumA(c) supported UTF-8?

Re:

[Quantum gravity]

Well this part of the article _might_ be part of the explanation: "a significant history of mental health problems."

I'm going to need that in better units..

[RightSaidFred99]

I will really need that converted to "# of MP3 songs" or "multiples of libraries of congress", I've been dumbed down too much over the years to know such specific units as Terabytes.

Pornhub

[Ryzilynt]

Apparently she was busy cross referencing several extraordinarily large databases.

Authorities have concluded this was all in an effort to attach real names and addresses to Pornhub search histories.

Steal/Stolen ...

[Retired ICS]

I wish the people who wrote this crap would learn the English language. The data was not stolen, it was copied. Stolen means "the taking of a thing without the consent of the owner thereof, depriving the owner of possession and use of the thing taken".

If you mean "copied", say copied. If you mean stolen, say stolen. Do not say "stolen" when you merely mean copied.

Re:Steal/Stolen ...

[rnswebx]

Interesting take, albeit completely incorrect. To steal does not require deprivation of ownership. I can steal your identity while you still have access to it.

per dictionary.com: to appropriate (ideas, credit, words, etc.) without right or acknowledgment.

per merriam-webster: to take or appropriate without right or leave and with intent to keep or make use of wrongfully

Re:

[remoteshell]

Brilliant. I have been searching to articulate this distinction ... if you ever get to Colorado, I'll treat you to a craft brew, psilocybin and cannabis.

Re:

[chill]

No, the actual legal definitions vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction and depriving the owners isn't always part of the definition. For example:

"Stealing commonly refers to larceny and larceny is the unlawful taking or carrying away of the goods of another with the intent to convert them to your use." [United States v. Kemble, 197 F.2d 316 (3d Cir. N.J. 1952)]

https://definitions.uslegal.com/s/steal/ [uslegal.com]

However, the article was using "stolen" as vernacular for one of a number of possible crimes such as larceny

Re:

[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

Fascinating: What was her motive?

[remoteshell]

According to the parent article in Forbes, she knew she was strapping a bomb vest on herself when she posted to github. Any comments on what her motive may have been would be appreciated. In any event, she's an interesting person, and if /. were real life, I'd ask her for a date.

Re:

[Areyoukiddingme]

In any event, she's an interesting person, and if /. were real life, I'd ask her for a date.

You realize "she" is a pre-op transexual, right? If that's your thing, go right ahead, but you should go in knowing.

"Her" motives appear to be "because 'she' could". "She" has severe mental health issues, to the point where "she" tweeted, "After this is over I'm going to go check into the mental hospital for an indefinite amount of time. I have a whole list of things that will ensure my involuntary confinement from the world. The kind that they can't ignore or brush off onto the crisis clinic. I'm never c

Re:

[doesnothingwell]

"Might want to rethink that date idea."

A woman seeking help with her problems is better than the millions that won't. The pre-op tranny thing is a judgment call, still likely to be less trouble than my ex.

Re:

[i286NiNJA]

Oh yeah dating unstable women is a great idea.

Hopefully

[rlwinm]

Hopefully the hacker stole this vital bit of data for "her": https://www.youtube.com/watch?... [youtube.com]

Hacker?

[ElizabethGreene]

I'm conflicted if downloading data from an unprotected storage account is actually 'hacking'. I also find the illegality of downloading it extremely dubious.