**MAN PLEADS GUILTY TO HACKING NEARLY 600 WOMEN'S SNAPCHAT ACCOUNTS**

In a disturbing case of cybercrime, an Illinois man has pleaded guilty to hacking nearly 600 women's Snapchat accounts to steal nude photos. Kyle Svara, 26, admitted in federal court in Boston that he used phishing tactics to gain access to the victims' accounts between May 2020 and February 2021.

Svara used social engineering techniques to obtain his victims' email addresses, phone numbers, and Snapchat usernames. He then texted over 4,500 targets, impersonating Snap representatives, and requested access codes. Unfortunately for Svara's victims, he was successful in harvesting credentials from roughly 570 women, and accessed at least 59 accounts without permission to steal compromising images.

The defendant advertised his "services" on multiple online platforms, offering to "get into girls' snap accounts" for clients. He also traded stolen content, asking potential clients to contact him through the encrypted messaging app Kik. One of Svara's clients was former Northeastern University track and field coach Steve Waithe, who hired Svara to hack Snapchat accounts of students at Northeastern and members of the women's track and field and soccer teams.

Waithe was sentenced in March 2024 to five years in prison for cyberstalking, cyber fraud, and sextortion after targeting at least 128 women. Svara also independently hacked into the accounts of women in Plainfield, Illinois, and students at Colby College in Maine.

Svara now faces charges of aggravated identity theft (carrying a minimum sentence of two years), wire fraud (up to 20 years in prison), computer fraud (up to five years), and making false statements related to child pornography (maximum of eight years). When interviewed by investigators, Svara falsely stated that he did not know anything about hacking Snapchat. He also claimed that he had no interest in child pornography and had never accessed such material.

Contrary to these statements, the defendant collected, distributed, and solicited child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Svara is scheduled for sentencing in federal court before U.S. District Court Judge Brian E. Murphy on May 18th.