Student Arrested by FBI for Allegedly Stealing Over $220,000 in Crypto Through Malware-Infected Steam Games

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has arrested a Florida-based student, Zyaire Dontaevious Zamarion Wilkins, for allegedly stealing over $220,000 in cryptocurrency. The alleged scheme involved distributing free games on Steam that were infected with malware. These games, including titles like PirateFi, Dashverse, Lampy, Lunara, and BlockBlasters, have since been removed from the Steam platform.

According to a criminal complaint, Wilkins and collaborators promoted these games on platforms such as Discord, LinkedIn, and Telegram. The FBI's investigation, which began in March, identified approximately 8,000 PCs infected by the malware over the past two years. The investigation reportedly led authorities to Wilkins after interviewing an accomplice. Further steps involved tracing a cryptocurrency account used to purchase Uber gift cards, which then led to Wilkins through Uber delivery records. A subsequent search warrant for Wilkins' residence resulted in the confiscation of his laptop, phone, and digital wallet credentials.