“Smiling Hacker,” Top 10 FBI Most Wanted: The Story of Algeria’s Notorious Cybercriminal Hamza Bendelladj
In 2013, who hadn’t heard of Hamza Bendelladj? Born in 1988 in Tizi Ouzou, Algeria, Bendelladj is a notorious hacker with the codename BX1, often dubbed the “Smiling Hacker” by certain media outlets. He was hunted for five years by Interpol and the FBI (making the FBI’s top 10 most wanted list), suspected of siphoning off between ten and twenty million dollars from over two hundred American and European financial institutions via a computer virus named “SpyEye.” This malware infected more than 50 million computers worldwide, with a significant portion of the victims in the U.S. It was developed by Bendelladj and his Russian accomplice Aleksandr Andreevich Panin, also known as “Gribodemon,” to steal banking information stored on infected computers.
The SpyEye malware allowed the hacker to infiltrate banks’ or individuals’ computers, stealing passwords and login credentials. Once he had control of an account, Bendelladj could empty it in just a couple of clicks. Upon his arrest, he made confessions, saying:
“He said he hacked several U.S. banks and, in a single transaction, could collect between 10 and 20 million dollars,” revealed a Thai police officer in 2013.
Bendelladj also hacked the official Israeli government website. He reportedly stole over 280 million dollars, redistributing much of it to various Palestinian NGOs. Married and a father of one, he had been living in the Al Madaniya district of Algiers until his arrest.
His Arrest:
After a five-year manhunt, Hamza Bendelladj was arrested on January 8, 2013, by Thai police while making a stopover in Bangkok, transiting between Malaysia and Egypt. The young hacker appeared unfazed by his arrest and did not resist. He simply said goodbye to his family and followed the officers who had come to detain him. His wife and daughter continued their journey to Egypt without him. Bendelladj, handcuffed and sporting a radiant smile, was presented to the media, with the photos making headlines worldwide. This earned him the nickname “Smiling Hacker.” According to Thai police, he was one of the top 10 most wanted individuals by the FBI.
In January 2014, he pleaded guilty to 23 charges. With 50 million computers compromised, a large online campaign emerged, showing strong support for his release. Bendelladj was sentenced to 15 years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.
About SpyEye:
SpyEye is malware that targets users running Google Chrome, Opera, Firefox, and Internet Explorer on Microsoft Windows operating systems. For more details…
My original article: https://www.elmesmar.fr/2020/11/hacker-souriant-le-jeune-pirate.html
