Hunter Moore, the infamous involuntary porn kingpin who was facing trial in March, has agreed to plead guilty two felony charges: one count under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (18 U.S.C. § 1030(a)(2)(c)) and one count of aggravated identity theft (18 U.S.C. § 1028A(a)(1).)
The violation of the CFAA — commonly referred to as ‘hacking’ — carries a minimum two year sentence, and Moore faces up to seven years in prison. It’s incredibly unlikely that Moore will receive the full seven years. More also faces fines which may reach as high as $500,000.
Moore’s charges stem from allegations, which he has admitted, that he solicited and paid co-defendant Charlie Evens to access e-mail accounts and search for nude photos, which Moore would then post on his website, IsAnyoneUp.
Evens still faces trial in March. There is no plea agreement with Evens that has been made public, if one exists, and Moore’s agreement does not include any indication that he has agreed to testify against Evens.
Moore’s plea deal comes less than a month after YouGotPosted proprietor Kevin Bollaert was convicted on numerous extortion and identity theft charges and IsAnybodyDown operator Craig Brittain submitted to sanctions by the Federal Trade Commission for his conduct in deceiving people into sending him nude photos and subsequently charging for their removal. A third operator, Casey Meyering, will shortly be tried on extortion charges for deploying a scheme identical to Brittain’s. In one month, approximately half of the operators of dedicated revenge porn sites have been sanctioned, convicted, or are likely to be convicted. Stunning.
