Active Duty U.S. Soldier Hacked Telecom Companies, Extorted Them, Sold Data

Former U.S. Army soldier Cameron John Wagenius pled guilty on July 15 to conspiring to hack into telecommunications companies’ databases, access sensitive records, and extort the telecom companies by holding the stolen data for ransom. The United States Department of Justice (DoJ) released a statement announcing his guilty plea.

Wagenius made headlines in early 2025 after his indictment, when his hacking exploits were tied to then-president-elect Donald Trump and then-vice-president Kamala Harris.

The DoJ’s announcement states, “between April 2023 and December 18, 2024, Wagenius, 21, used online accounts associated with the nickname ‘kiberphant0m” and conspired with others to defraud at least 10 victim organizations by obtaining login credentials for the organizations’ protected computer networks. The conspirators obtained these credentials using a hacking tool they called SSH Brute, among other means. They used Telegram group chats to transfer stolen credentials and discuss gaining unauthorized access to victim companies’ networks. This activity happened while Wagenius was on active duty in the U.S. Army.”

The DoJ further states Wagenius and his co-conspirators extorted the telecom companies privately and in public forums. “The extortion attempts included threats to post the stolen data on cybercrime forums … The conspirators offered to sell stolen data for thousands of dollars … They successfully sold at least some of this stolen data and also used stolen data to perpetuate other frauds, including SIM-swapping. In total, Wagenius and his co-conspirators attempted to extort at least $1 million from victim data owners.”

Wagenius pled guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, extortion in relation to computer fraud, and aggravated identity theft. His sentencing is scheduled for October 6. He faces a maximum of 20 years in prison for the conspiracy to commit wire fraud plea, a maximum of 5 years in prison for extortion in relation to computer fraud, and a mandatory 2-year sentence consecutive to any other prison time for aggravated identity theft.

He previously pled guilty to other charges related to the same crimes.