Washington, D.C. (February 11, 2025) – Eric Council, 25, from Athens, Georgia, pled guilty on Monday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to charges of conspiracy to commit aggravated identity theft. His guilty plea stems from his involvement in a conspiracy that hacked into the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) X account and posted fraudulent messages.
Council was arrested on October 17, 2024, after investigators linked him to a sophisticated SIM swap operation designed to bypass security features like two-step verification. His actions were part of a larger scheme involving hacking and publishing fraudulent posts under the guise of the then-SEC Chairman.
According to court documents, Council conspired with others to execute SIM swap attacks, a tactic used by criminals to gain control of victims’ phone numbers and bypass online security measures. The goal was to steal sensitive information and access internet-connected accounts.
The fraudulent attack on the @SECgov X account occurred on January 9, 2024, when Council, working with others, performed a SIM swap on the phone linked to the account. This gave him access to the SEC’s social media account, where a fake post was made, falsely announcing the SEC’s approval of Bitcoin (BTC) Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs). The post caused BTC prices to surge by over $1,000 before the SEC regained control of the account and clarified that the post was unauthorized.
Council used fraudulent IDs and impersonated the victim to obtain a replacement SIM card at an AT&T store. He then used the new SIM card to gain access to the @SECgov account. After sending the password reset codes to his co-conspirators, Council sold the phone for cash and returned to Birmingham, Alabama.
Further investigation into Council’s activities revealed that he had attempted additional SIM swaps in June 2024, as well as possessing several fake IDs and evidence of his involvement in other SIM swap fraud schemes. Council admitted to receiving $50,000 from co-conspirators over six months in exchange for carrying out SIM swaps.
He now faces a maximum of five years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and up to three years of supervised release. His sentencing is scheduled for May 16, 2025.
The investigation into Council’s actions was carried out by the FBI’s Washington Field Office, the SEC Office of Inspector General, and other federal agencies, with prosecution handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin Rosenberg, CCIPS Trial Attorney Ashley Pungello, and Fraud Section Trial Attorney Lauren Archer.
