Since 2011, Hinchy has owned and operated numerous companies, including the 16 investigated by the New York OAG, for selling and promoting spyware targeting Android and iOS devices, including Auto Forward, Easy Spy, DDI Utilities, Highster Mobile, PhoneSpector, Surepoint, and TurboSpy.
Once installed on victim devices, the spyware would collect and exfiltrate data such as call logs, text messages, photos, videos, emails, Chrome browser data, location, and data from messaging and social media applications, including WhatsApp, Skype, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
The spyware was sold to ‘customers’ looking to spy on their spouse, colleagues, or other individuals, and was installed on the victims’ devices without their knowledge and without notifying them of the data collection and exfiltration activities...
Collected data, the New York OAG has discovered, was being transmitted in an insecure manner, which exposed it to potential cyberattacks and snooping...
The New York OAG fined Hinchy and his companies $410,000 in penalties and ordered them to modify the software so that it would notify device owners of the data collection activities. more
