The Hunt For Russia's Most Successful Credit Card Thief

Always change your password.
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/ kirayt
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#hacker #2023 #anonymous

[@flarestorm9417]

This guy is the prime example of why you should 'quit while you're ahead'. He had many chances to learn, even had a near-death experience by random chance, yet still kept going. How much money does one man need anyhow? How many cars can one buy? How many vacations can one take? I wonder how much of this was for the thrill versus the monetary reward.

[@pagannova3621]

if someone at the FSB "had his back," they might have also pushed him. never know.

[@Mightydoggo]

There was a study that showed most super rich spend a very low 1 digit % of their entire wealth during their lifetime. The rest just sits in assets and bank accounts, drying up the global money flow.

[@innocento.1552]

Is there a psychological condition called obsession? Maybe we should hold back on the sermons when there are many details we might not know

[@zdrux]

It's just another drug.. you need it, your body needs it, you're not stopping.

[@Kingxeyesore]

Wealth is about greed and addiction. There are studies on it. The only addiction I have no sympathy for.

[@TennSeven]

And I bet the criminally negligent point of sale company that made it possible for this guy to steal a million+ credit card numbers faced no consequences whatsoever.

[@commonsense31]

Well there are some server providers that offers server sites completely outside any governmental jurisdiction.

[@wolu9456]

44 counterfeit payroll debit cards 12 hours 9million taken from atm's

[@Dollybird198]

And y do u think that exists ? Because everyone profits from stuff like this !! ❤

[@Dollybird198]

@@wolu9456absolute genius ❤❤

[@sticklebacketienne]

@@Dollybird198 who’s everyone? The only people who benefitted from this were the hacker, the people who bought the credit card info from him and probably the guy he knew at the Russian security service. The POS system vendor probably went out of business, the restaurants would’ve been hurt and the people who were stolen from obviously lost out. Not everything is a conspiracy

[@integralmath]

I used to eat at the Broadway Grill in the late 1990s. While the card thing may have been a burden to them, that place was dying for years by that point. As the owner, Matt Walsh, noted after the incident, they took steps to secure their systems and had no decline in use or patronage. The food just turned to shit since the good days of the mid to late 1990s.

[@tranquil14738]

Matt Walsh???

[@ENDfilms44]

Funny how the secret service is more known for vip protection than money matters these days when they were created initially to deal with counterfeitting.

[@ElysetheEevee]

I just feel bad for the two that had to cuddle up to Tronald Dump. I bet they went home smelling like literal sewage. 😂

[@ItsMeMattCarter]

Dude really used 123 in his password hahahahahaha

[@adultdeleted]

it's like your password being "asshole123." that's one of the most commonly used passwords. it's probably in the top 1000 wordlist. 🫢

[@Pasi123]

I used to use one of the TOP 20 most used passwords in Finland, it also had 123 in the end just like in my username. If the password is so popular it has to be good, right?

[@sinjin8576]

Scumbag degenerates are rarely smart enough to cover all their bases

[@afro-es]

@@Pasi123💀

[@ChopSquadBaby]

​@@Pasi123😅

[@kellswiss]

Who would’ve thought that it all fell apart because of a hacker’s simple and predictable password. Truly the result of insane hubris and cockiness

[@OrgaNik_Music]

Arrogance has been the downfall of countless criminals. You'd think they would know better.

[@MR-hk2qu]

Sometimes the people that should know better either don't know better or don't adhere to it themself. In a security workshop, the trainer told us they did a post hack cleanup at a company. 2 weeks later the hackers were back in, the reason? One admin reused his old password.

[@TikkiNikki]

It surprising how many hackers, especially some the FBI linked with anonymous, got caught due to poor passwords

[@prdproductions]

It didn't fall apart due to that... his hard drive was unencrypted, so the agents could've easily plugged it into any other computer. In fact it would've been better to do that since the files wouldn't have been updated

[@Splarkszter]

He has just a filthy scammer and social engineer, not a hacker. A hacker would at least have had different passwords and encrypted all his data, on top of that, always kept a defensive low profile.

[@dougray30]

Kira deep dives are like ordering double dessert.

[@MarsFromEarth1]

They make you have a sugar rush?

[@dougray30]

@@MarsFromEarth1 suddenly I'm reminded of the Python "Oscar Wilde" bit....

[@TheFakeyCakeMaker]

💯

[@travispagent937]

You cant finish it all?

[@joshsmith7033]

it makes you feel bloated and gives you a headache??

[@scottaaker5534]

Always love your channel. Doesn't matter what the subject is, you're able to make it entertaining. It's clear that you put in true time and effort and that this is something you care about. Cheers sir

[@fridaycaliforniaa236]

Totally agreed

[@TheGuy-cf2rg]

Dude, I love this video essay documentary style videos! Please more.

[@manzarelahi1812]

Well I do believe what comes around goes around. This man went through trauma and heartbreak in his younger years, and instead of using his skills to improve others' lives, he inflicted that same trauma and pain on to others. It's unfortunate what happened to him, but when you build your life up quickly and lavishly with sand, don't be surprised when it all comes crumbling down.

[@ivysvids]

what trauma and pain did he inflict? nobody lost any money apart from banks and they can get fucked anyway.

[@RaveN_EDM]

He didn’t inflict trauma on anyone, he stole a tiny fraction of major credit card companies profits, the people who had their cards leaked aren’t responsible for the charges lol that’s why a lot of people use credit cards in the first place, if it’s gets hacks it’s the banks problem.

[@manzarelahi1812]

@@RaveN_EDM Well, I hope your accounts never get hacked...

[@Dollybird198]

@@manzarelahi1812get a life . These major corporations exploit us ‘ normal ‘ folk everyday . They even aid and abet trafficking and money laundering . Hsbc has been done for laundering the Mexican cartels money numerous times .. no jail sentences just a fine , which they pay .. and do it again . I rate people like him . Find the loopholes . Exploit the loopholes . All these people wud have been reimbursed. End of

[@Dollybird198]

@@manzarelahi1812n that was HSBC London UK. Now . If that’s not large scale corruption fraud embezzlement no doubt blackmail .. and god knows what else .. wake up . Your government commits crimes against the public Morning noon and night . And not just financial!!! ❤❤

[@ekki1993]

Holy crap, the man lived a life worthy of a movie. I hope he never gets one, though. We already have people idolizing the scammer from The Wolf of Wall Street. Last thing we need is another movie for dumbasses to misunderstand.

[@stephenallen4635]

Youll be happy to know then that Jordan Belfort recently lost a ton of money investing in a ponzi scheme

[@agoniavr]

A scammer which, unsurprisingly, was recently part of yet another scam uncovered and thoroughly explained by - among the others - Coffeezilla. Some people never change no matter what life throws at them, be it Jordan Belfort or this Roman.

[@MyNewUserName47]

he made it to an eposode of American Greed

[@sayLeotardbutsayitChinese]

To be fair the movie sucked

[@ziegfeld4131]

Wolf of Wallstreet is a great movie wtf @@sayLeotardbutsayitChinese

[@FlameFlickers]

Really glad I found your channel. Your videos are always really well researched and presented and the content is always interesting.

[@crowruin2]

I am really liking these computer security videos I hope you keep doing them

[@mateusgodoy5060]

You told this history so interestingly well! Great work leaving his father's connections to the last moment, that was such a mind blowing part!

[@drfrankendoodle]

i almost didnt click on this cuz you changed your pfp and I didnt notice it was you. Then I saw it again in my notifs and realized it was you.

[@TNOBasedBatov]

Bro same 😭💀

[@internet_userr]

Xi jing Ping Was Following Me xi jing Dong Was playing ping pong

[@dickbutte9471]

He should really make a community post about it

[@theworstisover1323]

Same

[@MephyFaust]

Same 😂

[@Hickeroar]

Would love to see Kira start interviewing the subjects of his videos as part of these documentaries.

[@TikkiNikki]

Remember kids: for every Roman (successful hackers who made a mistake), there are 10 who haven’t made a single mistake still making millions that we’ve never heard of

[@peternguyen2022]

I'm curious, on what (scientific/statistical/etc.) basis do you claim that only ten percent of hackers get caught? I might be wrong, but if there are ten hackers, then the most successful one (in terms of money stolen) will be targeted by the FBI and Secret Service or similar agencies. The other nine are "small fish" until they become big, and then are targeted by federal agencies.

[@adoe2305]

Eh. Naaa

[@THX-uo9dm]

I think that was meant to be a generalization or "guesstimate". Not a statistical fact.

[@JoshLathamTutorials]

@@peternguyen2022it’s much less than 10%. As in consequences for all hacks ever. Every hacker starts somewhere, and I’d bet money that every single one started doing stupid shit when they were kids before realising that’s not a good idea. It’s the guys that never stop that get caught.

[@xman5393]

i think you got that backwards

[@thesaurusakasickakatheomc7688]

The irony of the phrase "trusted stolen credit card vendor" is like 10,000 spoons when all you need is a knife.

[@randallwilson4088]

Kira i love the deep dives but please post some sources that you use! Kinda like Slightly/barely sociable do, it would make these much more interactive! Been a fan for a while now and i love the direction you are taking this. Hope all is well mate.

[@dhc2]

the businesses storing customer card info in plaintext should be prosecuted aswell

[@TheKeinash]

Content quality is amazing as usual, still unsure why Kira isn't so popular

[@krzbrew]

OF COURSE his father was an MP.

[@evilleader1991]

Russia mafia state

[@KitOConnell]

These guys are too friendly for their own good. I had a credit card fraudster invite me to join his criminal enterprise after he stole my card. I declined, of course.

[@oppressing.]

Lol

[@zimboy9921]

Hahaha

[@fredEVOIX]

Geoff Johns a writer for DC comics created Larfleeze the orange lantern, and he nailed the greed and avarice persona perfectly, powerful has a hoard of loot but it's not enough it's never enough, acquiring the things becomes more important than whatever good they would do you for people like this

[@Kexrex]

love to have you back with banger content

[@Skoopyghost]

Imagine being foiled by not changing your password. It's like slipping on a banana peel.

[@maskettaman1488]

Lmao she "loves" him when he's healthy and wealthy, but the moment he gets injured she divorces him, takes half his stuff and his kid, and vanishes. Classic

[@85wastedyears]

Typical Woman behavior...

[@azjeep]

same happen to me ...... bed ridden doesnt make a great husband working everyday of the week to keep her home with the kids was my worsts mistake. She had corrupted the kids against me and after my injury I became solo

[@monkofdarktimes]

It's why the ex would injure or kill them

[@fastares4553]

@@azjeepdamn bro sorry for you

[@naviscript2655]

Hello Incel.

[@Lupinicus1664]

Heavy price to pay for childish OPSEC. Just like pompompourin and Ross Ulbricht. Which is reassuring really. Most 'normal' criminals are caught because they are not the sharpest knives in the drawer, now we are being constantly reminded that the same is often true for cyber criminals.

[@LiquidAudio]

Man, your videos are some of the most interesting on the whole platform IMO. Love the channel!

[@BradenJohnYoung]

"Unless, of course, they already have"... Kira cyber criminal arch confirmed?

[@wasabiginger6993]

Just stumbled over your channel and wow, I can’t stop watching! Great fascinating content, thank you!

[@aidanwow1593]

The Secret Service is part of the Department of Treasury. This is why they were the ones looking into this.

[@kirinkappa5662]

We have Kickstarter MMOs to thank for making Kira find his real passion - investingating stammers xD

[@cornishcat11]

brilliant as always

[@AegisHyperon]

Thought this would be about the guy being held in prison indefinitely for forgetting a password

[@Aera223]

I thought it would be about an innocent man being sent to prison because his password was misused to do something illegal and frame him...BTW, if he had not traveled out of Russia, he probably wouldn't have been arrested, so that was a bigger factor than a reused password imo

[@ronquixote3767]

I knew a guy long time ago that bought numbers, used cvs gift cards to wipe. Write new numbers and give the cards to strippers. They’d go out buy 1! Item with each card. The bank will cover a sus charge. Usually a laptop or a bag and he’d sit in the lobby of random hotels and the hoes would stroll in with loot. Their payment was a card. Then he’d sell everything, mfer never wore the same clothes twice. He was way ahead of everyone. I always think about that dude

[@ARCSYS4049]

The primary responsibility of the Secret Service is money protection first, not the other way around. Presidential protection came much later.

[@ytubeanon]

jokes on you, I've never been interesting enough to become the target of a hack

[@ProjectRedfoot]

Can't take my money if I stay broke!

[@guesswho2778]

neither have i, yet i had someone in Melbourne (im not in Melbourne) on an iphone (ive never had an iphone) get into my google account to try and buy advertising for a roofing company in America recently. I got no notifications that anyone had or tried to log into my account, i got no 2fa text or notification on my phone despite having 2fa enabled.

[@n0odles86]

​​@@guesswho2778they can cleverly make you think someone logged in, so you follow the link in the official email and either give them your info via malware, or you accidentally let them in via 2FA. When I get one, I go straight to the source via the web browser and change my passwords. Also send it off for phising. To add for all: never verify a 2FA if you never asked for one; they can get in your accounts if you go and verify it.

[@bzipoli]

​@@ProjectRedfootwon't have any money from me if i'm always in severe debt and have no credit 😎

[@bzipoli]

​@@guesswho2778i'm sorry but from this story alone you do seem like a pretty interesting person ngl

[@JFJD]

20:10 So in other words, he got caught because he couldn’t keep his ochko shut.

[@ExecutorQ3]

Somehow i liked the older channel icon more... but it's just an icon... thx for the vid as always

[@intaze]

19:54 this would be the perfect time to go “and this is why he shouldve used our sponsor (*insert password managing sponsor)”

[@WobblesandBean]

He had MILLIONS. Why not pull out and disappear to live the good life? No. Roman didn't care about the money. He was addicted to the thrill. He loved having control over others and sticking it to the feds, grew arrogant, and paid the price.

[@unbannablebob395]

Another epic video, bro. Keep them coming😊

[@flywheelshyster]

It saddens me when Kira starts a video without saying hello friendos

[@motionoftheocean7524]

☠️☠️☠️☠️☠️☠️☠️☠️☠️☠️☠️☠️☠️☠️🥶🥶🥶

[@JustAllinOneResource]

What ruined his life was the fact that he is a crook. If he wasn't a crook then his life wouldn't have been ruined.

[@patriciafuller1556]

As past employee of a big chain store, it's EXTREMELY noticeable when people come in with two phones and beeline for the giftcards. They usually try to buy around 100 dollars per purchase so the card dosent get flagged. They'll grab 50 visa giftcards and sit at self checkout. I brought it to the attention of my supervisor and they said there wasn't anything we can do and I shouldn't step in. So i took it to our loss-prevention officer and she implemented a policy for employees. We had to tell them they had to put it all on one purchase or leave. It didn't completely solve the problem but it helped so much. It's everyone's responsibility to call out weird/strange behavior like this! Store employees need to pay extra attention to protect the consumers from fraud/scams.

[@parafitality2730]

IMO someone from his inner circle was paid off by a competitor to snitch on his location to the feds.

[@boyycarolina]

seems like an astute observation perhaps made by someone who's experienced the politics of crime 👀

[@sayLeotardbutsayitChinese]

Pretty hilarious that his wife divorced him because she "did not want to care for vegetable." Guess the scammer couldnt recognize a fellow scammer

[@plamenvasilev]

B is V in Russian. So it's not Bulba, it's Vulv4 :)

[@mbarker_lng]

Well, another rule would be "don't flaunt your wealth if its all stolen wealth"

[@AlmightyRager95]

Spend like you're living paycheck to paycheck. An occasional splurge here and there, but nothing too extreme. Not a career criminal, but even I could figure that's the best way. I work as a janitor.

[@Knowbody42]

Hollywood hackers: Have like 15 screens, and when they hack, they furiously type for a couple of minutes to magically break seven firewalls.

[@commonsense31]

Imagine if he had just switched side, he would probably be owning a cybersecurity firm doing consultancy for businesses.

[@xPayana]

Boringggg

[@talaverajr391]

Sounds like an assasination from the 3 letters. I say this because they would have no way to extradite him from Russia. Either that or karma, but this seems too much of a coincidence to be karma.

[@Rain1dog]

Absolute banger of a video.

[@Bmack3426]

Kira: “He was flown to Washington State” Airplane: *Lands in Washington DC* 😂

[@vanesslifeygo]

lol

[@crownvicmusiccvm904]

@@vanesslifeygoyou are gorgeous!

[@vanesslifeygo]

@@crownvicmusiccvm904 Thanks for a great complement crownvic, are you in the U.S.?

[@crownvicmusiccvm904]

@@vanesslifeygo wow I was expecting to get called a simp or creep lol you’re welcome & yes I am.

[@vanesslifeygo]

@@crownvicmusiccvm904 hello

[@Nozgh]

His password is basically "butthole123", jesus mate

[@boyycarolina]

no way ...

[@RageGamer15]

Judge went on like it was personal😂

[@Thoringer]

"Scholtzky's Deli in Idaho" is the equivalent of saying "Dairy Queen in Texas" ;-)

[@menphues]

Keep up the awesome work man. Love your content. Wish I could do this for a little and was smart enough with systems haha

[@Boomer04888]

....yikes

[@pollen_za]

Arrogance and greed is what makes the scheme vulnerable to feds

[@todivetoday]

Great video, thank you. About "ochko". Yes, in slang it means "a-hole". But it also means 21, as in the card game blackjack, a lucky number to get. Hope, it helps.

[@ironwolf99999]

19:20 I'm pretty sure he means Washington DC

[@DominicanInTheUK]

Washington state shows plane going to Washington DC... so close 😛

[@4PeaceAndLov3]

I love your content. Slowly listening to every video you’ve produced

[@lasennui]

I was today years old when I learned that credit card thieves would have tech support, and now I'm filled with so many questions completely irrelevant to my life. Does it pay more to be black market tech support? How would that go on a resume? Is the first suggestion still always try to turn it on and off again?...

[@sativashrub]

How ironic that his life fell apart while casually getting lunch. The same treatment he gave his victims.

[@jcia7986]

Criminal enterprises got better customer support than greedy corporations…

[@NickyBlue99]

He should have spent more time bowling with his cousin.

[@krzbrew]

Worth noting, according to the letter which keeps scrolling, his wife abandonned him (and flew to the US) once the risk of him becoming a vegetable became aparrent.

[@havoc467]

Eh i dont think its worth noting. She was married and had kids with him, if he became a vegetable because of the terrorists attack, it would still be fucked up for her to leave/divorce him. Its pretty clear she was a gold digger. No i am not saying people who are unfortunate enough to have their spouse have this type of accident that they should be forced to be with them and take care of them their whole life, but if you damn well have the money to do so then its utterly a dogshit move to leave them to take care of themselves.

[@oxymoron02]

​@@havoc467 That's a very reductive assessment. Some people just don't handle grief well and "escaping" a situation of grief can be a means of coping* with it. Not saying that was the case here, but you cannot make a blanket statement on psychology when you don't know the subject matter.

[@havoc467]

@oxymoron02 no you cant specifically say, but you can make the general comment thats odds are she was still not a good person. Greif is still just an excuse at the end of the day and still doesnt make it right

[@Zmej420BlazeIt]

I was expecting the story to be that she was the one that identified him after reading that

[@notyourdamnbusiness8795]

if you read the letter he also completed several bible studies in prison. must be true if a self proclaimed psycho thief says so. no way he would straight up make shit up and wrote a heart wrenching letter, how terrible his life was, so he might get let out earlier than after 27 years. i say its all a load of bullshit.

[@iblackfeathers]

6:10 ncux is not pronounced psxik in russian. псих where п is p, not n. c is s. и is like i. x is like h. that’s p-s-i-k. there is no “n” involved.

[@Anamnesia]

_In the game of _*_Cat and Mouse_*_ the _*_Mice_*_ will _*_ALWAYS_*_ win - but the _*_Cats_*_ will be extremely well fed_ ...

[@fanzbeans]

6:13 Actually, it's not that "ncux" is pronounced "psich," but that it resembles the Russian letters in the word "псих" which is pronounced "psich." Russians would pronounce the latin letters "ncux" same as an English speaking person.

[@aliasdjavanguard]

Another banger Ash, great story. I couldn’t help thinking though - this would make an amazing movie

[@Orchestructive]

Not gonna lie that last line sounded like an admission! LOL

[@lancemarchetti8673]

Brilliant documentary... well done man!

[@OvAeons]

If he negotiated, he would likely have been recruited into a service for anti hacking some time down the line... life would be controlled but he would've been comfortable.

[@adoe2305]

Probably not

[@Apple_Beshy]

government doesn't do that anymore, it's 2023 there's literally unlimited amount of talent they can recruit, it's not 1990 - 2009 anymore

[@macD723]

That only happens in movies now days. There are too many people taking classes to learn how to ethically hack. It's called cyber security. One of the biggest and best, most expensive schools that teach hacking is in Arizona. Most grads go on to work for the FBI, CIA, and the rest work for private companies that pay them to try and hack their networks.

[@Ampbeezie2010]

That slight chuckle at 20:29 summed up this whole video. This was the dumbest smart guy I've ever heard of 😂

[@deeslick1959]

Secret service is like we know exactly who he is and we will get him in a couple years

[@ceb4747]

Not important, but people from there pronounce it Mc”Lane” even though it’s spelt McLean

[@dznqbit]

I remember this hack of the Broadway Grill! Crazy!

[@mujesiraatlagic7594]

This is not some rags to riches to rags story. The most important details are not emphasized. The guy is not some lone hacker. It is obvious that from the beginning he was part of the russian intelligence/criminal structures (as most criminal activity in Russia is) to which he paid protection or for which he worked, that such a position, and not amount of money he stole, made him a target of american secret services, that locating him in the Maldives was an "inside job" of opposing clans in Russian goverment and that once he was arrested, no matter what evidence he presented, he was done for.

[@leerose8628]

Man this guys life would be a great movie.

[@devilmancrybaby2101]

bro this is why I would never be a bad guy lol. If ppl 10x smarter than me can get caught at the end what’s the point you ask? there’s no point lol

[@Gandalf-The-Green]

How that didn't segue into a sponsorship ad for nord vpn or some similar sponsor only the gods know, but I commend you on your virtue, it was refreshing to expect that kind of setup and not get it.

[@SnowyLeopardFrom1997]

That's a REALLY, REALLY sad story When I heard about the Moroccan bomb, I was yelling "DUDE, STOP IT. DUDE, STOP IT!"

[@selectivevisions]

I’m just saying the fact that the dude ended up involved in a terrorist attack makes me think that attack may have been less terroristy and more of another criminal sect attacking another criminal.

[@alewis514]

Any criminal or stunt man or anyone undertakng something with significant risk of a bad outcome (jail, injury, death) usually comes to an end due to overconfidence and hubris. If you're doing this for the first time you're extra-careful and think of everything. You want to make sure this is safe for you. But once you did this 100 times and nothing happened you kinda let your guard down, start to skip important steps, get lax on procedures. And this is going to be your undoing - nothing bad happened so far BECAUSE you were dilligent and ensured your safety. Now you're skipping on that, increasing the risk. This happens in regular, non-criminal activities. Any major civil disaster is a result of this. Investigation reveals that procedures existed on paper but no one ever bothered to follow them, they were routinely skipped. Nothing bad happens so it can't ever happen, right?

[@OTOss8]

Who the heck is Guy Fox 0:11 ?

[@seanb.6793]

Dope should have gone white hat - he could have made tons of money as a security consultant, sold his services to police agencies, helped corporations learn how to protect themselves, etc.

[@pete9364]

They "never" recover money...

[@LWRC]

Well, Roman should be satisfied that he will have room and board for the rest of his life so he won't be concerned about where his next meal will be coming from and where he will sleep that night!!!

[@CP-jk3tc]

20:27 I chucked at how Kira even laughed at the criminal's lazy move.

[@drdanoosh]

I love the phrase "making money on other people's misery" that is employment

[@arfam2680]

Sounds like Roman was brought down by an anonymous tip

[@JeremyAndersonBoise]

I used to eat at that Schlotsky’s in Boise and I am pretty sure I have met the dude. Neat and sketchy.

[@gl1500ctv]

I've heard that the prison in Butner, NC isn''t a bad place to be, IF you have to go to prison. It's where Bernie Madoff, R. Kelly, Tiger King and Unabomber were sent. Low security mostly white collar crime facility that's got top-notch medical care.

[@Octanitrocubane-enjoyer]

hell of a video, love all your work man

[@Alfaomegabravo]

27 years for 170m$ in damages is way to lenient.

[@hullinstruments]

20:40 Tony robbins's the Tony Robbins of fraud 😂

[@kombatwombat6579]

Late to the party but I still LOVE these investigative videos. I always discover something interesting.