A Nigerian national, Matthew Abiodun Akande, was sentenced to eight years in prison for hacking multiple Massachusetts tax preparation firms and filing over 1,000 fraudulent tax returns seeking more than $8.1 million in refunds. He used the Warzone RAT and a crypter, delivered via CEO‑impersonation phishing emails with a disguised Dropbox link, to steal clients’ Social Security numbers and prior-year tax data before funneling refunds through co-conspirators. #WarzoneRAT #MatthewAkande
Keypoints
- Matthew Abiodun Akande was arrested at London’s Heathrow Airport in October 2024 and extradited to the U.S. in March 2025.
- He purchased licenses for the Warzone remote‑access trojan and used a crypter to evade antivirus detection.
- Akande sent phishing emails impersonating a CEO with attached W-2/1099 forms and a Dropbox link that installed the RAT.
- The stolen Social Security numbers and tax data were used to file over 1,000 fraudulent returns seeking more than $8.1 million, with over $1.3 million collected.
- U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani sentenced him to eight years in prison, three years supervised release, and nearly $1.4 million in restitution.