A Kentucky man was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison for his role in creating and selling a remote access trojan (RAT) used to spy on victims.
As part of his plea agreement, Colton Grubbs, 21 of Stanford, Kentucky, pled guilty to selling a software, called LuminosityLink, for $39.99 apiece to more than 6,000 customers knowing that it would be used by some customers to remotely access and control their victims’ computers without the victims’ knowledge or consent, according to a DOJ press release.
Authorities charged Grubbs, with conspiracy to unlawfully access computers in furtherance of a criminal act, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and the illegal removal of property to prevent its lawful seizure.
“The sentence announced today would not have been possible without the cooperation of our partners in the private sector and international law enforcement, specifically the Palo Alto Networks Unit 42 and the United Kingdom’s Southwest Regional Cyber Crime Unit,” Michael A. Christman, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Louisville Division said in a press release.
In addition to his sentence, Grubbs must also turn over more than $725,000 worth of Bitcoin.
