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    First person sentenced for SIM hijacking faces 10 years in prison

    by 
    Jon Fingas
    Jon Fingas
    02.01.2019

    SIM card hijackers are starting to face the consequences of their actions. California college student Joel Ortiz has agreed to a plea deal that will have him serve 10 years in prison for stealing over $5 million in cryptocurrency through SIM swapping -- the first time someone has faced a sentence for the crime, authorities told Motherboard. Ortiz admitted to compromising about 40 victims through the technique, which typically involves making phony SIM swap requests and using the newly gained control to obtain logins that require two-factor authentication.