2026-07-15 13:10 UTC
When Peter Stokes (Scattered Spider's "Bouquet") was arrested in Finland this month, people speculated that his real identity had been unmasked by Microsoft using the Windows GDID assigned to his computer. GDID *was* used to trace crimes to his computer, but Unit 221B's Allison Nixon tells me he had been unmasked in 2023, long before he committed the biggest crimes mentioned in his indictment. I spoke with her about tracking Stokes and other members of The Com, and why these cybercriminals brag about their crimes online and are so reckless about drawing attention to themselves and leaving a trail of evidence. We also talked about why, if Stokes had been identified in 2023, it took until 2026 to arrest him.
https://www.zetter-zeroday.com/tracking-peter-stokes-and-the-com-allison-nixon-and-her-work-unmasking-cybercriminals/
Replies (2)
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@gwen@tech.lgbt 2026-07-15 14:22
@kimzetter@infosec.exchange ew that woman is disgusting
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@xethos@mastodon.xethos.net 2026-07-15 16:41
@kimzetter@infosec.exchange > FBI will not arrest juveniles, because there is no federal juvenile system. But FBI have, I believe, searched houses and also visited [juveniles] and said, like, hey, please stop doing crime…. Tracks, and makes sense re: the FBI not having a juvenile dept, but the image of the FBI coming by for a chat and dropping the phrase "Please stop doing crime" verbatim is absolutely marvelous