{
  "id": 222151,
  "title": "Snowflake extortionist admits 165-victim cloud crime spree – and squeezing one target twice",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/06/snowflake-extortionist-admits-165-victim-cloud-crime-spree-and",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-08-06T14:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Register Science",
    "slug": "the-register-science",
    "url": "https://www.theregister.com/storage/2026/08/06/snowflake-extortionist-admits-165-victim-cloud-crime-spree-and-squeezing-one-target-twice/5284059"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Connor Riley Moucka, a 26-year-old resident of Kitchener, Ontario, has pleaded guilty to multiple charges in the US in relation to a large-scale hacking spree. Moucka and his associates targeted over 165 organizations, compromising their cloud environments and stealing sensitive data. The total ransom payments from victims amounted to approximately $2.5 million, while Moucka alone received around $495,000. The group was linked to the theft of over 165 organizations' customer records, including banking details, passport and driver's license numbers, and personal information of government officials. They demanded more money from at least one victim who had already paid a ransom, eventually receiving about $6 million. Moucka was arrested in Canada and extradited to the US in July. He is scheduled to be sentenced on October 27.",
  "summary": "Connor Moucka pleads guilty over sprawling 2024 campaign that looted billions of records",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The Register",
        "title": "Snowflake extortionist admits 165-victim cloud crime spree – and squeezing one target twice",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/06/snowflake-extortionist-admits-165-victim-cloud-crime-spree-and-224890",
        "published": "2026-08-06T14:00:00.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}