Hacker known as Max is 55-year-old woman from Russia, US says

In the six years leading to October 2018, Alla Witte allegedly transformed from amateur developer to a key cog in a cybercrime syndicate known as Trickbot. Witte, now 55, assumed the identity Max and started writing illicit code, according to a federal indictment unsealed on Feb 8 after she was detained in Miami. — Dreamstime/TNS

Alla Witte’s plans for a new career as a computer programmer included helping clients make enough money to see the world, according to YouTube videos and social media posts. She was in her late 40s with a degree in applied mathematics and an itch to do computer programming.

But there was a darker side to Witte’s interest in computers, according to federal prosecutors. In the six years leading to October 2018, Witte allegedly transformed from amateur developer to a key cog in a cybercrime syndicate known as Trickbot.