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04 August 2004

Fortune favored the author of a $10 million computer fraud

BitDefender, a Bucharest-based data security provider, stated that Calin Mateias, the young Romanian recently indicted by a California Grand Jury for hacking into the online ordering system of Ingram Micro Inc. and placing more than 2,000 orders over a period of four years, is nothing more than a script-kiddy, with a stroke of luck.

"He must definitely have some computer knowledge, but he's no genius. He did display social-engineering abilities by managing to avoid being apprehended by the law enforcement authorities for such a long time," Mihai Radu, BitDefender Worldwide Communications Manager said. "Of course, this does not make him any less culpable" Radu concluded.

Between 1989 and 2002 Romanian teenagers were drawn to hacking, carding and other forms of cyber crime, due largely to the absence of a proper legal framework. Lots of cases were reported by local media and authorities, but no action could be taken. Calin Mateias undoubtedly assumed he could act with impunity.

If convicted by a Romanian court, Calin Mateias could face up to 15 years in prison and hefty fines. However, the outcome of his trial might well depend on how lenient the judges are in another high profile case, that of Dan Dumitru Ciobanu, a virus writer who was apprehended by the police with the help of BitDefender antivirus analysts.

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