Noah Michael Urban, a 20-year-old hacker associated with the cybercrime group Scattered Spider, has pleaded guilty to charges involving wire fraud, identity theft, and the theft of millions in cryptocurrency. The Florida-based defendant now faces up to 60 years in prison.
Federal prosecutors say Urban played a central role in a hacking ring that used SIM-swapping techniques to gain unauthorized access to victims’ online accounts. Through these attacks, Urban and others stole between $9.5 million and $25 million in digital assets and confidential corporate data between August 2022 and March 2023.
Urban, known by aliases such as “Sosa,” “Elijah,” and “King Bob,” was arrested in 2023. During raids on his home, investigators recovered approximately $2.89 million in cryptocurrency stored on his desktop computer. He admitted to the FBI that the funds came from his illegal hacking activities with Scattered Spider.
He has agreed to forfeit the stolen assets and pay over $13 million in restitution to more than 30 victims. His guilty plea includes charges filed in both Florida and California federal courts.
The Scattered Spider group is known for targeting major corporations, including MGM Casinos, Coinbase, Reddit, Riot Games, and more. Members often posed as employees or conducted phishing attacks to breach security systems. Microsoft has previously called the group “one of the most dangerous financial criminal organizations.”
Urban is one of five individuals charged in connection to the group’s cyber activities. While he and another suspect have been arrested, others remain at large. One member, Tyler Buchanan, was recently arrested in Spain and awaits extradition.
Authorities say Scattered Spider is part of a larger global cybercrime network known as “the Community” or “the Com,” responsible for numerous high-profile attacks.
