Father who had to pay child support hacked into government databases to fake his own death

An American man has been sentenced to nearly seven years in prison for hacking into government systems and declaring himself dead to avoid paying child support.

The US Department of Justice has released details of the case of 39-year-old Jesse Kipf, who was sentenced to 81 months in prison for computer fraud and identity theft. The verdict was announced on Tuesday.

In January 2023, Kipf used his doctor's credentials to access Hawaii's death registry, where he created a “case” recording his own death. The attacker filled out a Hawaii state death certificate form, appointed himself as the medical certifier, and certified his death with a doctor's digital signature. Because the paperwork was filled out correctly, Kipf was listed as deceased in many government databases.

The motive for faking his death was a desire to avoid paying alimony and child support. Evidence presented at trial included Kipf's internet search history on his laptop, where he searched for information on how to eliminate deceased support in California.

Kipf didn't stop at faking his own death. He stole additional credentials and used them to access other countries' death records, private business networks, and government and corporate networks. According to the Justice Department, the attacker attempted to sell access to these networks to potential buyers on the dark web.

The man pleaded guilty. Upon his release, which will take at least five years and eight months, he will have to pay more than $195,000This amount covers both the outstanding maintenance and the cost of compensation for the damage caused to the computer systems to which he gained access.

According to the New York Times, Kipf has previously been convicted of possessing financial instruments that did not belong to him and was also accused of using stolen credit cards.

Source: TheRegister