Maxim Senakh, 41, of Veliky Novgorod in Russia, has been sentenced to 46 months in prison for using the Ebury malware to infect tens of thousands of computers. He was arrested in Finland and extradited to the U.S.

Ebury is a piece of malware that targets Linux, FreeBSD, and Solaris systems in order to steal login credentials. Senakh reaped millions from his scheme to run spam campaigns and commit advertising click fraud.

Acting Minnesota US Attorney Gregory Brooker said: "Working within a massive criminal enterprise, Maxim Senakh helped create a sophisticated infrastructure that victimized thousands of Internet users across the world. As society becomes more reliant on computers, cybercriminals like Senakh pose a serious threat. This office, along with our law enforcement partners, are committed to detecting and prosecuting cybercriminals no matter where they reside."

Ebury is probably best known for attacking the Linux Foundation and the Linux Kernel Organization's kernel.org. Arrested and waiting trial in those attacks is Donald Ryan Austin, charged with hacking.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Blanco said: "The defendant and his co-conspirators sought to turn a network of thousands of infected computers in the United States and around the world into their personal cash machines. "But cybercriminals like Mr Senakh should take heed: they are not immune from US prosecution just because they operate from afar or behind a veil of technology. We have the ability and the determination to identify them, find them, and bring them to
justice."

Source: The Register