In the Sverdlovsk region, a student sold viruses.

      In Nizhny Tagil, a 19-year-old technical college student will stand trial, accused of distributing malicious computer programs. According to the investigation, the young man had been selling viruses since 2023.

      As reported by the press service of the Lenin District Court, the student, who was studying to become an electrician, became interested in programming and took online courses in Python, after which he began studying malicious software.

      The investigation believes that in March 2023, the young man posted an advertisement on one of the social networks for the sale of viral programs for personal computers. The cost of the services ranged from 500 to 3,000 rubles. Over the year, several people showed interest in the publication, but according to the investigation, there were no real buyers.

      In 2024, an FSB officer discovered the advertisement as part of operational-search activities. He contacted the student and asked him to sell a program for stealing passwords and user data. The young man agreed and sent a link to an archive with the files and the password for it, receiving 5,000 rubles in return.

      An examination established that the programs provided were indeed malicious. One of them was intended for stealing usernames and passwords and tracking user actions, while the other allowed intercepting data entered via the keyboard and remotely controlling the computer.

      The student has been charged under the article "Creation, use, and distribution of malicious computer programs for selfish motives." He fully admitted his guilt, wrote a confession, and cooperated with the investigation.

      The court also noted that at the time of the crime, the accused was a minor.