Bangalore: It is learnt that Federal authorities have charged three alleged hackers for using one of the most destructive computer viruses in history called Gozi. The virus was used to steal millions of dollars around the world.

According to the authorities, the three alleged hackers namely Nikita Kuzmin, Mihai Paunescu and Deniss Calovskis played far-reaching roles in order to infect at least one million computers, including 40,000 in U.S.

Business and Government bodies, including NASA were said to be others, among victims.

The virus was disguised as an innocent looking PDF document which when opened, would secretly install malicious software on computers and tap bank account numbers, usernames and passwords. The hackers used the data to transfer funds out of the victims’ accounts, resulting in the theft of tens of millions of dollars, added the authorities.

The scheme began in 2005 with one of the hackers, named Kuzmin, who is Russian hired a programmer to write code for the virus. The code was then sold to other hackers at $50,000, plus a cut on the profits, via underground Internet forums, authorities said. Kuzmin was arrested in 2010, pleaded guilty and began to cooperate with the authorities.

Calovskis, a programmer from Latvia helped create the virus, tricked online banking customers into revealing additional information such as social security number, mother’s maiden name, driver’s license, ATM number and date of birth. He was arrested in Latvia last month and awaits extradition. He is charged with 67 years in prison if convicted.

Paunescu, from Romania, allegedly provided a Web hosting service that helped the alleged hackers disguise themselves from authorities. If convicted, he will have to face up to 60 years in prison.

Manhattan’s U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said in a statement that this case serves as a wakeup call to banks and consumers alike as cybercrime is one of the biggest threats faced.

FBI’s investigation which began in 2010 involved the help of law enforcement and intelligence authorities in Latvia, Romania, Maldova, Netherlands, Germany, Finland, Switzerland and the UK.

In addition to the arrest, authorities also found 51 servers, laptops, desktops and external hard drives.

The vast pile of data will aid in criminal investigations in FBI offices around the country, as well as law enforcement agencies around the world, said George Venizelos, the FBI Assistant Director in charge.

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