http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060822/BIZ04/608220342 Mike Martindale The Detroit News August 22, 2006 ROCHESTER HILLS -- A 33-year-old man was arrested Monday, accused of extorting nude photographs and videos from a Rochester Hills teenager by convincing her he had hacked into her computer and could ruin her parents' credit rating, authorities say. Barbar Majid Chaudhry was arrested in Fort Wayne, Ind., where he and his wife and child were visiting his brother. In a case that Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said Monday could have national and possibly international implications, Chaudhry--a Pakistani national-- is to be extradited here to face charges of extortion, child sexually abusive activity, and use of a computer to commit a crime, all felonies punishable by up to 20 years in prison. He will also face charges of communicating with another to commit a crime, a felony that carries a 15-year prison penalty. "This is scary and disgusting on several levels," Bouchard said. "It underscores what we have been saying for some time: Parents have to know what their children are doing on the Internet and their children have to be comfortable enough with their parents to let them know of anything unusual that they encounter when going on the computer." Bouchard said police know about dozens of other possible victims found on Chaudhry's computer. "We think there are going to be a lot of victims across America and they've just scratched the surface." Bouchard said the scheme involved computer transmissions made in Dubai and Germany and "literally there could be victims around the world." Bouchard said in March, when the girl was 15 years old, she received an Automatic Instant Message over the computer by an unknown person -- "martinisback001" -- who informed her he had hacked into her computer and gained access to not only her personal files but also her parents' credit card information. "He said he had done this as a hobby," Bouchard said That man, believed to be Chaudhry, was transmitting e-mails from his home 7,000 miles away in Dubai, Bouchard said. The man demanded the girl e-mail nude photographs of herself to him or he would ruin her credit and that of her family, according to investigators. After she sent the photographs, police say the man then demanded nude videos of her and threatened to send the nude photographs he already had to her friends and also post them on the Web. The girl then complied with the second demand as well, investigators said. The man allegedly also said he wanted to meet her for sex and gave her a specific date and location for their meeting. Members of the Oakland County Sheriff's Office Internet Crimes Unit posed as the girl online as he attempted to hack into her computer earlier this month. The computer probe led back to a Fort Wayne, Ind., address where the suspect was found with several relatives, including his wife, brother and sister-in-law, and several children. During an interview with Fort Wayne police, authorities said the suspect admitted he had been communicating by computer with a 16-year-old Michigan girl who had supplied him with nude photographs and videos. He also admitted attempting to hack into the girl's computer but denied ever forcing her to take the photos or video, they said. Bouchard said investigators are still going over Chaudhry's computer, seized in Indiana, and suspect he operated under several different "screen" names. At one point Chaudhry allegedly instructed the girl to do specific things on the video and told the girl he intended to have sex with her at a hotel and was exploring several locations where the meeting would take place. The girl told her family and the sheriff's office became involved last month, Bouchard said. "This is how a blackmailer works," Bouchard said. "Once they get you on the hook they can easily move on to the next phase." Anyone who may have been similarly contacted on the Internet is asked to call the Oakland County Sheriff's Office at (248) 858-4954. _________________________________ HITBSecConf2006 - Malaysia The largest network security event in Asia 32 internationally renowned speakers 7 tracks of hands-on technical training sessions. Register now: http://conference.hitb.org/hitbsecconf2006kl/
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