Teen Hacker Charged After Targeting Major Companies: What Families Should Know

A 19-year-old named Peter Stokes has been brought from Finland to face criminal charges in Chicago federal court for hacking. He is accused of being part of a group called Scattered Spider that broke into company computer systems. The U.S. Department of Justice announced the extradition on July 1, and a judge ordered him held in custody on June

30. Scattered Spider has targeted major companies in the past, which means if you or your family members use services from businesses they attacked, your personal information like passwords, email addresses, or payment details could have been stolen. The group has been linked to several high-profile data breaches where customer information was exposed. If you receive any emails or text messages asking you to verify your account, reset your password, or click on links, be extremely cautious right now. Here is what you should do immediately:
31. Check your email for any notifications from companies you do business with about data breaches.
32. Change passwords on any accounts where you use the same password across multiple sites.
33. Turn on two-factor authentication wherever it is offered, especially for email, banking, and shopping accounts.
34. Monitor your bank and credit card statements closely for any charges you do not recognize. To protect your family going forward, make password security a regular conversation. Use unique passwords for important accounts, especially banking and email. Consider using a password manager to keep track of different passwords safely. Teach children and teens to never click on links in unexpected messages, even if they appear to come from familiar companies. These basic habits can protect you from the next group of hackers, whoever they may be.