U.K. Hacker Charged in $3.75 Million Insider Trading Scheme Using Hacked Executive Emails

Robert Westbrook of London was arrested last week and is expected to be extradited to the U.S. to face charges related to securities fraud, wire fraud, and five counts of computer fraud.

According to the court documents, Westbrook is believed to have executed a fraudulent scheme between January 2019 and May 2020 that allowed him to generate millions in profits by gaining unauthorized access to Microsoft 365 accounts belonging to corporate executives.

"On at least five occasions, Westbrook gained unauthorized access to Office 365 email accounts belonging to corporate executives employed by certain U.S.-based companies to obtain non-public information, including information about impending earnings announcements," the DoJ said.

The accused then used that information to purchase securities and made profits by selling them in short order once the details became public knowledge.