Man Jailed for Hacking Psychotherapy Center and Seeking Ransom from Patients: Breaking News Update

A 26-year-old man has been sentenced to six years and three months in prison after hacking tens of thousands of patient records at a private psychotherapy center in Finland and attempting to extort ransom from the victims. The case, which shocked the nation, came to light in October 2020, prompting a record number of 24,000 people to file criminal complaints with the police.

The hacker, identified as Aleksanteri Kivimäki, was arrested by French police in February 2023 and deported to Finland. His trial concluded recently, with the Länsi-Uusimaa District Court finding him guilty of multiple charges, including aggravated data breach, blackmail attempts, and dissemination of private information.

According to reports, Kivimäki hacked into the information system of the Vastaamo psychotherapy center in 2018, downloading the database of 33,000 clients. He then demanded a ransom from the center, threatening to publish the patient records if his demands were not met. When the center refused, he began posting the information on the dark web and extorting money from patients.

Despite denying the charges, Kivimäki has been convicted of similar offenses in the past, including hacking into servers and targeting organizations like the US Air Force and Sony Online Entertainment. The Vastaamo case has prompted the Finnish government to expedite legislation allowing citizens to change their personal identity codes for added security.