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US authorities have brought charges against the co-owner of IT company GEN8 Services, who is suspected of international conspiracy to sell fake license keys for network devices.
Charges were brought against 75-year-old Minnesota resident Benjamin Paley. According to the US Department of Justice, between 2014 and 2022, Paley and his accomplices Wade Huber and David Rosenblatt organized a scheme to sell counterfeit license keys for Brocade switch software.
Brocade Communications Systems is a California-based manufacturer of network devices that manufactures switches for mission-critical environments, including government organizations, hospitals, and educational institutions.
You can purchase this license for the company's products either from Brocade itself or from resellers at a price ranging from $1400 to $100,000, depending on the features chosen, the scale of deployment, and the level of support and service.
According to the investigation, Paley and his accomplices allegedly used specialized programs to hack into the license generation system and created fake keys that Brocade products took for valid.
The scammers are believed to have created and sold at least 3,637 fake licenses for Brocade switches at prices well below market prices, thereby causing Brocade financial losses ranging from $5,000,000 to $363,000,000.
"As part of this scheme, Rosenblatt and Huber regularly communicated with customers and potential buyers who wanted to purchase switches and license keys, and received the necessary information from them," the US Department of Justice says. "Paley used the information they obtained to create fake license keys that allowed them to open additional ports or switch functionality."
Paley is now charged with conspiracy to commit access device fraud and three counts of access device fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 5 years in prison for conspiracy and up to 15 years in prison on each of the other counts.
In addition, a fine of up to $250,000 may be imposed on each count, or up to twice the amount of financial gains/losses from the crimes committed.
Source
Charges were brought against 75-year-old Minnesota resident Benjamin Paley. According to the US Department of Justice, between 2014 and 2022, Paley and his accomplices Wade Huber and David Rosenblatt organized a scheme to sell counterfeit license keys for Brocade switch software.
Brocade Communications Systems is a California-based manufacturer of network devices that manufactures switches for mission-critical environments, including government organizations, hospitals, and educational institutions.
You can purchase this license for the company's products either from Brocade itself or from resellers at a price ranging from $1400 to $100,000, depending on the features chosen, the scale of deployment, and the level of support and service.
According to the investigation, Paley and his accomplices allegedly used specialized programs to hack into the license generation system and created fake keys that Brocade products took for valid.
The scammers are believed to have created and sold at least 3,637 fake licenses for Brocade switches at prices well below market prices, thereby causing Brocade financial losses ranging from $5,000,000 to $363,000,000.
"As part of this scheme, Rosenblatt and Huber regularly communicated with customers and potential buyers who wanted to purchase switches and license keys, and received the necessary information from them," the US Department of Justice says. "Paley used the information they obtained to create fake license keys that allowed them to open additional ports or switch functionality."
Paley is now charged with conspiracy to commit access device fraud and three counts of access device fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 5 years in prison for conspiracy and up to 15 years in prison on each of the other counts.
In addition, a fine of up to $250,000 may be imposed on each count, or up to twice the amount of financial gains/losses from the crimes committed.
Source
