Noah Michael Urban, a 20-year-old from Palm Coast, Florida, was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for his role in cybercrime that included cryptocurrency theft, employee phishing and theft of company information. The U.S. Department of Justice announced the sentence on August 21, 2025.
Why was Noah Urban sentenced to 10 years?
Senior U.S. District Judge Harvey E. Schlesinger sentenced Urban for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Urban pleaded guilty on April 4, 2025. The sentence followed a scheme the Justice Department said ran from August 2022 through March 2023. The Justice Department’s sentencing announcement identifies the charges and court orders.
What did the Justice Department say the group did?
SIM swaps and cryptocurrency theft
According to the Justice Department, Urban and others used targeted SIM-swap attacks to obtain victims’ personal identification information, then accessed cryptocurrency accounts and stole cryptocurrency. The case involved at least 59 cryptocurrency victims. The DOJ’s account of the conduct says total victim losses exceeded $13 million.
Phishing employees and taking company information
During the same period, the group sent phishing text messages to employees at companies across the country. The DOJ says credentials harvested through those messages were used to access company systems and steal non-public information. It also says information from company intrusions, leaked datasets and other sources was used to access individuals’ cryptocurrency accounts and wallets. These are descriptions of the conduct in Urban’s case, not a claim that every Scattered Spider tactic was used in this scheme.
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How do the $13 million and $4.8 million figures differ?
The amounts refer to different things, so they should not be treated as interchangeable:
- More than $13 million: the DOJ’s figure for total victim losses.
- $13 million: restitution the court ordered Urban to pay.
- Approximately $4.8 million: cryptocurrency and other property ordered forfeited.
Forfeiture is a separate court order; it is not the total victim-loss figure or the restitution amount. The DOJ’s announcement reports these figures alongside the sentence.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What does the Scattered Spider advisory say about the broader threat?
A joint FBI, CISA and international partner advisory updated July 29, 2025, describes Scattered Spider as targeting large companies and contracted IT help desks. It identifies social-engineering methods such as phishing, push bombing and SIM swaps as ways the group may seek credentials or bypass multifactor authentication. That broader threat guidance provides context; it does not establish that every tactic in the advisory was part of Urban’s case.
For organizations, the advisory recommends defensive measures including phishing-resistant multifactor authentication. See the FBI and CISA joint advisory on Scattered Spider for the broader tactics and mitigation guidance.
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