Julius Kivimaki, a serial hacker suspected of stealing tens of thousands of psychotherapy patient records has been extradited to Finland after his arrest in France earlier in February.
AFP reports that the 25-year-old Kivimaki was now being held in Vantaa prison near Helsinki. Finland’s National Bureau of Investigation is aiming to interview the suspect as soon as possible.
Kivimaki has been charged with eight offenses tied to Vastaamo including hacking, leaking people's private information and falsifying evidence.
The Vastaamo breach came to light in October 2020, when a hacker under the moniker “Ransom Man” asked for an 450,000 euros ($485,000) ransom in bitcoin in exchange for not leaking patients’ private information. After the medical facility refused to pay, the hacker began contacting individual patients, demanding they pay a ransom worth about 200 euros ($215) within 24 hours (or 500 euros ($540) if not paid within 48 hours), if they didn't want to see their private medical and financial details get leaked.
Ultimately, over 20,000 records were leaked. Police said financial information stolen in the breach was also later used to commit fraud.