Eric Taylor, a former hacker, known as Cosmo the God, says he is now helping companies defend themselves against cybercrime.
Eric Taylor, who went by the nickname Cosmo the God, previously posted personal information of celebrities and government officials, including Michelle Obama, former CIA director John Brennan, Kim Kardashian and Tiger Woods. Now he consults companies as an advisor for startup company Path. Marshal Webb, also a former hacker, is the Chief Technology Officer of cybersecurity startup Path.
In his criminal days, Eric Taylor says he got personal information of public figures by hacking a Russian hacking site that had already stolen the data. He then blackmailed the Russian hackers by threatening to expose all their data. The Russian hackers had set up an operation that sold victims’ Social Security numbers, credit reports, addresses and date of birth. Taylor hacked into their website and then blackmailed them with the information the hackers had stored and collected. The Russian hackers responded to Taylor by allowing him to operate within their website with partial access. They gave him credentials to “buy” or access Social Security numbers at no charge.
Taylor would release daily some personal information for various public figures. He also developed a group of hackers that also became involved in Swatting.
According to Taylor, he also accessed customer account data directly at Amazon, Apple, AT&T and Netflix, sometimes gaining access to customers’ personal information. The companies did not acknowledge this security breach and illegal access.
Taylor said he wasn’t motivated by money. He said he was motivated by the thrill, and by politics.
Eric Taylor was only sentenced three years probation for his criminal activity. According to the Washington Times, Eric Taylor and multiple co-conspirators were accused by the U.S. government of illegally obtaining personal information from high-profile victims and publishing the information on a website known as Exposed.Su in 2013. Taylor pleaded guilty in 2016 to related charges and was sentenced at 2 p.m. Wednesday February 15, 2017 by U.S. District Judge Randolph Moss in Washington, D.C., according to the Washington Times.
Allegations against Eric Taylor and others charged in the sensitive information disclosure conspiracy were filed under seal, and the sentencing hearing was not listed on the court’s website. The Washington Times reporter Andrew Blake wrote that the details of the sentencing were confirmed to The Times by individuals familiar with the case, but not authorized to publicly discuss the matter.
See also …
The Washington Times: Teenage hacker sentenced for cybercrimes against Trump, Obama in 2013
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