Robert Purbeck has been sentenced to federal prison for hacking into computer servers and extorting victims across the United States. His actions affected more than 132,000 individuals by stealing personal information from various sources, including the City of Newnan and a Griffin, Georgia medical clinic.
"Purbeck’s crimes reflect the efforts of a callous and brazen cybercriminal who not only hacked into numerous computer servers and stole sensitive personal information from both private and public actors, but also threatened to extort many of his victims and disclose their data," stated U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. He commended law enforcement's work in ending Purbeck's activities.
Sean Burke, Acting Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta, highlighted the growing threat of cyber extortion: "This sentencing is just one example of the FBI working together to hold criminals that hide behind their computers accountable, regardless of their location."
In June 2017, Purbeck accessed a Griffin medical clinic server via a darknet marketplace, obtaining sensitive data on over 43,000 individuals. In February 2018, he breached the City of Newnan Police Department server using similar methods, stealing documents containing personal details of more than 14,000 people.
Purbeck also attempted to extort a Florida orthodontist in July 2018 by demanding Bitcoin payment for stolen patient files. He threatened to sell these files unless paid and harassed the orthodontist with threatening communications for ten days.
On August 21, 2019, FBI agents searched Purbeck’s home in Meridian, Idaho. They seized devices containing data from multiple breaches affecting over 132,000 people nationwide. These incidents led to significant costs for victims due to business disruptions and remediation efforts.
Robert Purbeck was sentenced by Chief U.S. District Judge Timothy C. Batten Sr., receiving ten years in prison followed by three years supervised release. He must pay $1,048,702.98 in restitution after pleading guilty to two counts of computer fraud and abuse on March 19, 2024.
The case was investigated by the FBI Atlanta Field Office with assistance from other agencies including the FBI Boise Resident Agency. Prosecution was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael Herskowitz, Nathan Kitchens, Alex R. Sistla along with Trial Attorney Brian Mund from the DOJ Computer Crime Section.
For further details contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.