Eric Council Junior, an Alabama man who hacked the U.S Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) X account, was sentenced to 14 months in prison. The man hacked the SEC X account in January 2024, posting a fake message announcing that a Bitcoin ETF was approved by the SEC, causing the price of BTC to shoot up by $1000. Eric was charged with aggravated identity theft and fraudulently accessing a device. Co-conspirators paid Eric $50,000 to perform the SIM swap hack that enabled them to access the SEC X account.
The SEC said the Bitcoin ETF was approved just a day after Eric hacked the X account. Eric was meant to have a larger sentence, but received a 10-month reduction, lowering his sentence to 14 months. The prosecutors may have lowered Eric’s sentence because he did take some accountability for his actions and apologized for the damage he had caused. However, Eric still maintains that the SEC should also take responsibility for having security holes in their SEC X account, with a social media manager who didn’t take enough precautions to prevent the fake post. Eric believes that the SEC was responsible in part for investor losses.
Eric hacked the SEC X account by pulling off a SIM swap procedure, using a fake ID to impersonate the victim, and requesting a replacement SIM card for the number of the SEC X account. He was able to get a replacement SIM card at an AT&T store in Huntsville, Alabama. Eric then purchased an iPhone and inserted the new SIM card, gaining access to the target phone. He was able to get reset codes for the SEC X account and then shared it with his co-conspirators. Then he returned the iPhone because he had access to the SEC X account and could now post messages without any obstacles in his way. Eric used his own ID card printer to create a fake ID. Eric was paid $50,000 by the co-conspirators to commit the SIM swap.
The co-conspirators, despite being the masterminds of the hack, have not been arrested yet, suggesting that there is more to this case than meets the eye. However, Eric agreed to a plea deal where he had to name the conspirators. Authorities, therefore, may already have the details of the co-conspirators. Eric has received his penalty, including a 14-month prison sentence and a forfeiture of his $50,000, which the co-conspirators gave him to commit the SIM swap. Eric entered into a plea deal in February. There has been nothing as of yet mentioned about the co-conspirators and whether they will face charges of their own.
In June 2024, the FBI raided Eric’s home in Athens, Alabama. They found his laptop and ID printing machine. They were also able to see Eric’s search history, which included searches for SIM swap instructions, telegram SIM swaps, SEC hack, and how to detect whether the FBI was investigating oneself. Eric also had lists about Federal identity theft laws. Eric was arrested in October 2024 and not long after entered into a plea deal.
