Attacker imprisoned for port hack that enabled cocaine smuggling

An Amsterdam appeals court has sentenced a 44-year-old hacker to seven years in prison for orchestrating a sophisticated cyberattack on a Belgian port company to facilitate a major cocaine smuggling operation.

The court found that the defendant played a central technical role in a criminal network that, in 2020 and 2021, used malware to infiltrate port management systems.

That attack allowed traffickers to move 210 kilograms of cocaine through the Port of Rotterdam undetected.

According to evidence, the hacker convinced a port employee in Antwerp to insert a malicious USB stick, creating a backdoor that granted remote control over container tracking, gate operations, and personnel access.

Investigators relied on intercepted Sky ECC encrypted messages, in which the defendant provided detailed instructions and boasted of having "total control." The court also convicted him of assisting with fraudulent transport documents to register the drug-laden container and of attempted extortion, threatening violence to collect a €1.2 million debt.

While a lower court had initially imposed a 10-year sentence, the appeal was reduced partly due to procedural delays, though the defendant has appealed this latest ruling.

Written by

Sharon Florentine Editorial Director

Sharon Florentine is the editorial director for CyberRisk Alliance’s Channel Brands and acting editorial director for SC UK. She is responsible for setting strategy and editorial direction and developing content for news, features, analysis and other written content, moderates live webcasts, and oversees research projects. Sharon has previously held key editorial, content and leadership positions at DevOps.com, Security Boulevard, CIO.com, Ziff Davis Enterprise, and CRN, among others.