A 16-year-old has been charged in New Zealand with running an online scam and defrauding people of some $50,000. The teenager, who has a long criminal history, has been sent to a secure facility while awaiting trial, where he could face a five-year jail sentence.

It is believed he learned his computer skills while attending a special training course, which the police sent him on in the belief that it would help his personal development. He then used his parents’ computer to post spyware on a message board, infiltrating his victims’ computers and stealing personal data. He then used these details to milk people’s bank accounts for money, stealing a total of about $50,000, while the largest single theft was of $6,323. Even though only $15,000 has been recovered so far, all the affected banks in New Zealand have agreed to pay back the money to their customers.

News of this teenager’s online scam have come on the back of claims that organised cybercrime gangs have become adept at recruiting young technology students and even financing studies for some of them. As cybercrime becomes more widespread, profitable and organised, and attacks are becoming more sophisticated, criminal groups are targeting younger individuals and grooming them for operations. And whereas before it might have been curiosity or a desire to show off that led teenagers to become hackers, now it’s the money that attracts them to cybercrime.