British Hacker Elliott Gunton Sentenced to Prison for $900,000 Scam
British hacker Elliott Gunton has been sentenced to three and a half years in prison for orchestrating a complex scam that defrauded victims of more than $900,000 through fake Coinbase login schemes. Sentencing at Norwich Crown Court, Judge Alice Robinson highlighted the seriousness of Gunton’s conduct, which involved creating a dummy website that mimicked the legitimate Coinbase platform to steal user credentials.
Criminal History and Notoriety of Gunton
The scam, which took place between 2018 and 2019, was part of a wider criminal spree by Gunton, who had previously gained notoriety as a hacker in his youth. At just 16 years old, he was involved in a high-profile breach of British telecommunications company TalkTalk, selling stolen customer data in exchange for cryptocurrency. In a separate incident in 2019, he was ordered to repay £407,359 (about $524,000) and received a community order for hacking a high-profile Instagram account.
Investigation and Recovery of Cryptocurrency
Authorities tracked Elliot Gunton through a combination of investigative techniques and his own online behavior. Gunton is active on various hacking forums, where he brags about his exploits and the money he has made through his illegal activities. His posts on platforms such as Twitter and HackForums revealed that he was involved in selling compromised social media accounts and participating in cryptocurrency scams. This online presence made it easier for investigators to gather evidence against him.
Gunton’s activities were thoroughly investigated by the Norfolk and Suffolk Cyber Crime Unit, which was established to tackle sophisticated cybercrime. They monitored his online transactions and communications, which included criminal chats about his scams. Investigators focused on tracking the cryptocurrency associated with Gunton. Although tracking cryptocurrency transactions can be complex, authorities managed to recover around £275,000 worth of cryptocurrency linked to him. This financial evidence was crucial in proving his involvement in the fraud.
