Any user can be a victim of online blackmail, just as has happened with this Brazilian priest. According to a recent report, after an investigation, the authorities in Goiás, Brazil, determined that Father Robson Oliveira diverted a million-dollar amount from the Association of Sons of the Eternal Father. Apparently some of the money was invested to meet the demands of a blackmailer who knew some dark secrets about Father Oliveira, mobile hacking experts mentioned.
This was not a minor incident, taking into account the number of law enforcement members who participated in the so-called “Operation Merchants”, consisting of a total of 16 search warrants by 20 prosecutors, 50 public officials and 68 local and federal agents. It is mentioned that Father Oliveira diverted more than 120 million Brazilian reais (about $23.3 million USD).
The interesting thing is that some of the money diverted (about $600,000 USD) was used to buy the silence of some hackers, including the young Welton Nunes Junior, who is mentioned, had a romantic relationship with the 46-year-old priest. Mobile hacking experts even mention that the investigation was made possible by this blackmail, as authorities detected some emails in which a group of individuals demand money from the father in exchange for not disclosing their secrets.
About how these individuals knew so much about the priest, the mobile hacking experts mention two of these hackers accessed Oliveira’s mobile phone and personal computer using the pseudonym “Detective Miami.” With this false identity the hackers contacted the father asking for two million Brazilian reais not to disclose his personal information, which included some details of his alleged relationship with Welton Nunes.
After a first unsuccessful investigation, Oliveira began transferring money to the hackers, who continued their threats to reveal compromising information and although everything continued normally for some time, eventually the religious association’s millionaire coffers were subjected to scrutiny from the authorities in Brazil.
Finally, the Brazilian authorities determined that Oliveira diverted huge resources from donations, public associations and collections to invest in her personal business (buying real estate, livestock, and rural property, among others). The priest now faces charges for crimes such as embezzlement, money laundering, document forgery, tax evasion and criminal association.
He is a well-known expert in mobile security and malware analysis. He studied Computer Science at NYU and started working as a cyber security analyst in 2003. He is actively working as an anti-malware expert. He also worked for security companies like Kaspersky Lab. His everyday job includes researching about new malware and cyber security incidents. Also he has deep level of knowledge in mobile security and mobile vulnerabilities.
