Hollywood email hacker charged, but who were celebs?

A hacker who orchestrated a phishing scheme that gave him illegal access to more than 300 email accounts — including dozens belonging to members of the Hollywood entertainment industry — was charged Friday with a federal crime.

Edward Majerczyk, 28, of Chicago and Orland Park, Illinois, has agreed to plea guilty to violating the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, specifically, one count of unauthorized access to a protected computer to obtain information, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

The case was investigated by FBI agents based in Los Angeles, and the plea agreement was negotiated by Los Angeles prosecutors. The case was transferred to the Northern District of Illinois for the entry of his guilty plea and sentencing because the defendant lives in the area.

Once he enters his plea, Majerczyk will face up to five years in federal prison, but both sides have agreed to recommend a prison term of nine months, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

The names of Majerczyk’s victims were not made public.

From November 2013 through August 2014, Majerczyk engaged in a phishing scheme to obtain usernames and passwords for his victims, sending email messages that appeared to be from Apple or Google, according to his plea agreement.

When they responded, Majerczyk then had access to the victims’ email accounts, from which he obtained personal information, including nude photographs and videos, prosecutors said.

The charge against Majerczyk stemmed from the investigation into the leaks of photographs of numerous female celebrities in September 2014 known as “Celebgate.”

However, investigators have not uncovered any evidence linking Majerczyk to the actual leaks, or that he shared or uploaded the information he obtained.

By illegally accessing the email accounts, Majerczyk gained entry to at least 300 Apple iCloud and Gmail accounts, including over 30 that belonged to celebrities, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

“This defendant not only hacked into e-mail accounts, he hacked into his victims’ private lives, causing embarrassment and lasting harm,” said Deirdre Fike, the assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles field office.

“As most of us use devices containing private information, cases like this remind us to protect our data,” she said. “Members of society whose information is in demand can be even more vulnerable, and directly targeted.”

— City News Service