Eric Council, a 25-year-old man from Athens, Georgia, has pleaded guilty to conspiracy in a hacking incident that caused a sudden spike in Bitcoin value, officials report. Council admitted to accessing the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) X account without authorization, leading to false information about the SEC's stance on Bitcoin Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs), which misled investors and impacted the cryptocurrency market. The Justice Department announced that Council could face up to five years in prison and a fine.
Council was involved in a SIM swap scam, a method where criminals trick mobile carriers into transferring a phone number to a new SIM card, bypassing security measures like two-factor authentication. Council entered his plea before U.S. District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson, with sentencing set for May 16. He faces potential prison time, significant fines, and years of supervised release.
On January 9, 2024, Council carried out a SIM swap attack targeting the mobile account linked to the @SECgov X handle. He impersonated the victim at an AT&T store, used a fake ID to obtain a replacement SIM card, and provided the security reset codes to others in the conspiracy. The group posted false information about Bitcoin ETFs on the SEC's X account, causing Bitcoin's value to rise by $1,000, but it later dropped by over $2,000 once the SEC corrected the misinformation.
FBI agents executed a search warrant at Council’s Athens apartment, finding fake IDs, equipment for making IDs, and a laptop with evidence of his involvement in the hack. Council admitted to receiving around $50,000 for his role in the SIM swap conspiracy over six months before his arrest. The case involved collaboration between the FBI, the SEC’s Office of Inspector General, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
