ATLANTA — A medical clinic in Griffin, an orthodontist in Florida and the City of Newnan all have one thing in common. An Idaho man hacked their computer systems and stole their data, prosecutors say.
Robert Purbeck, 45, was sentenced this week to 10 years in federal prison for hacking 20 victims across the United States and compromising personal information from 132,000 people, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia said in a press release.
In one case, prosecutors say Purbeck attempted to extort an orthodontist into wiring him Bitcoin payments, threatened to sell his child's personal information and sent threatening messages the doctor and his patients.
“Purbeck’s crimes reflect the efforts of a callous and brazen cybercriminal who not only hacked into numerous computer servers and stole sensitive personal information from both private and public actors, but also threatened to extort many of his victims and disclose their data,” U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan said.
Purbeck's case started back in June 2017 on the dark web, a hidden internet that requires a special portal and software to access.
Because of its anonymity, the dark web is popular among those who want to run illegal online businesses while avoiding detection.
One of the businesses propped up on the dark web is websites selling data from hacks and security breaches.
Dating back to June 2018, they say Purbeck bought personal information from data breaches on the dark web including the City of Newnan's Police Department, stealing police reports, other documents and personal information of more than 14,000 people.
The press release said he did the same for a Griffin medical clinic, removing the medical records and sensitive information of 43,000 individuals. The data included names, addresses, birthdates and social security numbers.
Then, in July 2018, prosecutors say Purbeck stole patient and personal information from a Florida orthodontist practice.
But with the files, they say Purbeck threatened to sell the personal information of the doctor's minor child and harassed the orthodontist and his patients, sending threatening emails and text messages over a 10-day period.
Over a year later, the FBI descended on Purbeck's home in Meridian, Idaho, seized his computer and identified stolen personal information for 132,000 people on his computers, the press release said.
“Cyber extortion is unfortunately a rapidly growing threat and highlights the ever-growing need for corporations to remain vigilant in cybersecurity efforts,” Acting Special Agent in Charge Sean Burke said.
The U.S. Attorney's Office says many victims of Purbeck's cybercrime suffered massive losses which included getting their systems back and disruptions to their business operations.
When he is released from federal prison, he will be subject to three years of supervised release. Purbeck was also ordered to pay victims $1,048,702.98 in restitution after pleading guilty in March to two counts of computer fraud and abuse.
