Eight-Year Sentence for Ukrainian behind Massive Data Theft Operation
Ukrainian citizen Vitalii Chychasov, aged 37, was sentenced to eight years of imprisonment in the United States for establishing and operating an online platform involved in the sale of personal data of millions of Americans.
Arrested in March 2022 while attempting to enter Hungary, Chychasov was subsequently extradited to the U.S. In June, during an international operation by U.S. and Cypriot law enforcement agencies, the darknet market SSNDOB was disabled.
In July 2023, Vitalii Chychasov pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit fraud using access devices and trading in unauthorized access devices through a specialized closed platform. Sergei Pugach, the second administrator of SSNDOB, was also arrested in May 2022.
The platform, known as SSNDOB (Social Security Number and Date of Birth), specialized in the sale of sensitive information, including names, birth dates, and social security numbers. The site generated over $19 million in revenue, impacting approximately 24 million people in the U.S. As part of the legal proceedings, Chychasov agreed to forfeit $5 million earned from the activities of his network of websites.
Court documents reveal that Chychasov and his accomplices advertised their services on darknet hacker forums, provided customer support, and closely monitored operations on their websites. To maintain anonymity, the platform’s servers were located in various countries, and customers could only use digital payments.
In addition to social security numbers, SSNDOB also sold email addresses, passwords, and credit card numbers. As noted by the blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis, the platform was linked to other well-known stolen data markets, including the major darknet market Joker’s Stash, which was shut down in 2021 and traded in credit card data.
According to the U.S. prosecutors, the information sold through SSNDOB could be used for various types of fraud, including tax, unemployment benefits, loan, and credit card fraud. Investigators also noted that the platform’s activity significantly increased at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, coinciding with the disbursement of government funds to support American businesses and families during the crisis.
