The Holosiivskyi District Court of Kyiv has approved a plea bargain for local resident Oleksii Pedchenko, convicting him of creating and distributing malicious software. For committing the cybercrime, the court ordered the defendant to pay a fine of 51,000 UAH.
According to court records, the illicit activity was documented in early 2025. On or before January 29, Pedchenko, operating under a pseudonym on a hacker forum, posted an advertisement offering custom-developed software under the Private Keeper project for sale.
On the same day, an undercover operative working under the direction of Ukrainian law enforcement contacted the seller. All subsequent negotiations were moved to the Telegram messaging app. When asked about the software’s functionality, Pedchenko explicitly explained that the tool was designed specifically for brute-forcing (automated password guessing) and gaining unauthorized access to private user accounts.
Investigators established that the developer subsequently delivered a complete bundle of digital assets over the internet. The transferred files included archives titled Stellarport and Kuna rar, CheckerTools (3) rar, [7.9.11.56] Private Keeper rar, and the main executable Private Keeper exe.
According to official forensic computer expertise, the delivered files contained malware designed to intercept sensitive data and interfere with the operation of information systems.
Payment for the malicious software was settled in cryptocurrency, with 500 USDT transferred directly to the perpetrator’s digital wallet. To cash out the proceeds, Pedchenko utilized the Binance exchange, converting the funds into fiat currency before transferring the balance to his personal Universal Bank card.
The defendant’s actions were classified under Part 1 of Article 361-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (distribution or sale of malicious software or hardware tools).
In determining the penalty, the court took several mitigating factors into account:
Oleksii Pedchenko had no prior criminal record;
He received a positive character reference from his local residence;
He fully admitted his guilt and demonstrated sincere repentance;
He actively assisted the investigation, helping law enforcement identify and expose other individuals involved in cybercrime activities.
Considering these circumstances, the court concluded that the offender could be rehabilitated without serving prison time, approving the plea agreement and limiting the sentence to a monetary fine.