Episode Details

What is it like to be a world-renowned cybercriminal and what motivates them? Today's guest referred to as the original internet Godfather shares his experience running a cybercriminal empire, going on the run, and ultimately turning his life around.

Brett Johnson was responsible for refining modern financial cybercrime as we know it today. After being placed on the United States' Most Wanted list, captured and convicted of 39 felonies, Brett promptly escaped prison. Captured again, Brett served his time, accepted responsibility, and found redemption through his loved ones and the help of the FBI.

Today he is considered a leading authority on internet crime, identity theft, and cybersecurity. Brett speaks and consults around the world to help protect people and organizations from the type of person he used to be.

• [1:11] - Brett starts telling his story by summing up why he got the title, "The Original Internet Godfather." What really got him the title was him building the first organized cybercrime community called ShadowCrew.
• [2:24] - Brett ran both ShadowCrew and CounterfeitLibrary. The other primary cybercrime site that he did not run was CarderPlanet.
• [3:14] - ShadowCrew and CounterfeitLibrary were run like forums and marketplaces to connect and network with other criminals.
• [4:37] - Brett was arrested in 2005 and was offered a job to work with the Secret Service, but chose to continue pursuing criminal activity and eventually made his way onto the United States Most Wanted List.
• [5:40] - Secret Service used a Trigger Fish, now called a Stingray, which locates targeted cell phones in a specific area. This device was used to find Brett at Disney World and to arrest him.
• [7:37] - Brett shares the experience of his car and house being searched and how his choices got him caught.
• [9:54] - Brett's tendency to break the law started when he was 10 years old and his mom was also a criminal. He shares a lot of his childhood background in shoplifting.
• [12:13] - Although he started shoplifting as a child, Brett says that as an adult, he made the choice to continue criminal activity.
• [13:32] - Brett's first cybercrime was on eBay by posting a Beanie Baby for sale, requiring the buyer to send a money order that couldn't be canceled, and sent her an item that did not match the post.
• [16:07] - Brett kept going and his eBay crimes led to pirated software, which led to modchips, which led to programming satellite DSS cards.
• [17:40] - After bringing in several thousand dollars per week under his real name, Brett got scared he would get caught, so he shares his story about getting a fake ID to open a bank account.
• [18:17] - Brett's fear of being abandoned became a reality when his wife left him.
• [19:36] - Brett remarried a stripper who was an addict. Through all of his crimes, his second marriage caused his sister to disown him.
• [21:06] - It took several years of not speaking to his sister and justifying his actions for Brett to realize that he was in prison because he chose to break the law.
• [22:08] - For three after being released from prison on probation in 2011, he couldn't get a job because he wasn't allowed to use a computer.
• [23:13] - Brett met his current wife during this time and moved in with her. He was able to find a job doing yard work.
• [24:00] - Although he was doing better, during the winter months whe