Mikhaylov Sergey

Biography

2006: Requests to the websites to delete caricatures of the prophet Muhammad

In March, 2006, Sergey Mikhaylov, one of heads of divisions of TsIB, sent Masterhost hosting provider the letter with a request to delete from the websites Caricatura.ru and Pravda.ru of a caricature of the prophet Muhammad, the caused protests of Muslims worldwide. The homepage of Pravda.ru then was temporarily blocked, and history became known.

2011: Attempt of clarification of data of the reader of the website Roem.ru for the benefit of Odnoklassniki

On April 28, 2011 the 30-year-old journalist Yury Sinodov was called by the employee of the Information Security Center (ISC) of FSB. Sinodov is an owner and the Chief Editor of the website Roem.ru specializing in publicizing of the market of the Internet companies and social networks, and the employee of FSB asked it to open data of one of authors of the website writing about the internal conflict in Odnoklassniki.

Already asked Sinodov such questions in 2007, and this time he decided to demand official confirmation. Soon he received it — in the form of a request with the coat of arms of FSB from the address cybercrime@fsb.ru, signed by the head of one of divisions of TsIB of Sergey Mikhaylov.

Then the Synods appealed to Department of Internal Security of FSB to check whether such attention to authors of its website is legal. Affirmed as the answer of the first deputy of Operational management of TsIB A. Lyutikov that the request is legitimate and has help character.

The synods on it did not stop and asked the same question to the State Office of Public Prosecutor. The answer was absolutely unexpected: the carried-out inspection set violation of the law "About operational search activity" the staff of TsIB, and it is already specified to the management of TsIB about inadmissibility of violations of the law.

After that the Synods with clear conscience laid out the correspondence with FSB and the State Office of Public Prosecutor on the website.

According to him, the interest of FSB is explained by the fact that officers, most likely, were used by the staff of private companies which wanted to find out where there was a leak of the restricted information:

"It seems to me that the company ("Odnoklassniki") mentioned in a post channels of leak of unofficial information on them are very interesting, at the same time it on nothing is not necessary to TsIBu. It is not a question of the state value, it is a problem of the company"^[1].

2017: Arrest on the case of treason

In January, 2017 it became known that the chief of the 2nd management of TsIB FSB Sergey Mikhaylov is arrested on suspicion of receiving money from the foreign organization with mediation of the employee of the Russian company in the field of information security. Investigation is conducted on suspicion of violation of Article 275 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation ("High treason"). Read more here.

Officially the main point does not reveal. According to different versions suspects could "hand over" to the States hackers of servers of Democratic party of the USA, participate in cracking of mailboxes of the Moscow parapolitical celebrities the Humpty Dumpty grouping (case is investigated separately and there is no direct link between affairs), or in another stories, for example to sabotage investigation of DDoS attack on Assist payment system (the founder of Chronopay payment system Pavel Vrublevsky is found guilty of it, he already served sentence).

It was reported later that Dmitry Shalkov supervised legal investigation of the colonel Mikhaylov.

2018: Refusal to admit guilt

In April, 2018 several sources of RBC told the edition that the entrepreneur Georgy Fomchenkov and the ex-employee of the Information Security Center (ISC) of FSB Dmitry Dokuchayev partially were recognized in transfer of data to foreign intelligence agencies. Two of four suspects signed pre-trial agreements with the investigation and their cases will be considered in a special order. At the same time specified RBC that the ex-chief of the 2nd management of TsIB FSB Sergey Mikhaylov (Dokuchayev was his deputy) and the former head of department of investigation of computer incidents of Kaspersky Lab Ruslan Stoyanov insist on the innocence. The interlocutor of RBC assumed that the American CIA received data through the former senior analyst on cyberthreats of the American company iDefence Kimberly Zents. At the request of the lawyer Stoyanov Zents gave written evidences where explained that she does not work for investigation and never paid Stoyanov for information.

The source of RBC explained Fomchenkov and Dokuchayev's position:

They were recognized in transfer of data to foreign intelligence agencies in an informal order, but at the same time insist that they did not realize the criminal nature of the events. Claim that thus helped to fight against cyber crime worldwide. For example, [the transferred information had to help] to punish those cybercriminals about whose actions they knew, but formally had no opportunity something to make as those "did not work across Russia"^[2].

2019

The prosecutor requested 20 years of colony for treason

On February 20, 2019 it became known that the prosecutor demanded the maximum terms for the ex-head of department of operational management of Information Security Center of FSB colonel Sergey Mikhaylov and the former head of department of computer incidents of Kaspersky Lab of the former head of department of computer incidents of Kaspersky Lab Ruslan Stoyanov who are accused of high treason (Article 275 to UK).

According to Kommersant, the closed trial of them goes in the Moscow District Military Court. The investigation believes that Mikhaylov revealed FBI methods and methods of conducting investigation and search operations in the matter of the founder and the CEO of Chronopay Pavel Vrublevsky. The American authorities consider him the cybercriminal.

Former head of department of computer incidents of Kaspersky Lab Ruslan Stoyanov

Investigators found out that having collected the data relating to a state secret, the colonel Mikhaylov wrote them on a compact disk which transferred to the major Dokuchayev, and that is to the employee of Kaspersky Lab Ruslan Stoyanov. The last gave a disk Kimberly Zents — the employee of the American company I-Defence which is engaged in data protection and actively cooperating with FBI.

 According to the investigators,  persons involved expected to receive $10 million for data transmission. However whether there was it in fact and whether found large amounts of money at detainees, it is unknown.

Vina Mikhaylova and  Stoyanov is completely proved,  the military prosecutor said in the closed debate and demanded for them 20 years of prison (the maximum punishment).

Protection of defendants asked them  to justify. At the end of February, 2019 they will perform with  the last word. In  treason they  do not admit guilt.^[3]

Condemnation for 22 years is strict the mode

On February 26, 2019 the court sentenced the former officer of FSB Sergey Mikhaylov and the former employee of Kaspersky Lab of Ruslan Stoyanov to 22 and 14 years of imprisonment of a high security on the case of treason. Both defendants in the case were found guilty of transfer of working information to intelligence agencies of the USA.

The decision was made by the Moscow District Military Court — the verdict was rendered by three judges headed by Vladimir Maurin, RBC reports. Mikhaylov was also deprived of a rank the colonel reserve officer and orders "For Merit to the Fatherland" 1st Class. Let's remind, judicial proceedings were closed from the press, and criminal case — is secret.

Mikhaylov's defender Ruslan Golenkov noted in a conversation with the Russian service BBC that for his client charge required 23 years of imprisonment. The lawyer Stoyanova Alexander Gusak reported that his client announced himself in the last word the true patriot of Russia, without having admitted guilt in treason. Mikhaylov arrived also, the lawyer^[4] says him^[4].

Notes