• by Ray Schultz , October 1, 2019

A former Yahoo software engineer hacked the email accounts of 6,000 Yahoo users to find sexual images and videos of young women, according to media reports.

The engineer, Reyes Daniel Ruiz, pleaded guilty on Monday in federal court in San Jose to one count of computer intrusion and faces five years in prison. Sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 3.

The announcement was made by U.S. attorney David L. Anderson, of the Northern District of California, with John F. Bennett, FBI Special Agent in Charge.

Ruiz gained access to Yahoo accounts and then went on to compromise Gmail, Facebook, iCloud, Dropbox and other online services. Reports say he also cracked user passwords.

The victimized women also included work colleagues and friends.

Ruiz, 34, destroyed the private computer on which he stored the lewd material after his employer noticed the activity.