IC Technology & Surveillance — 2026-04-26

Scattered Spider Co-Conspirator Pleads Guilty in Cybercrime Case

Tyler Robert Buchanan, 24, of Dundee, Scotland, pleaded guilty on April 17 in the Central District of California to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft, facing a statutory maximum of 22 years. Operating under the handle Tylerb, Buchanan admitted conspiring with Scattered Spider members to launch tens of thousands of SMS phishing attacks in 2022 leading to intrusions at Twilio, LastPass, DoorDash, Mailchimp, and at least a dozen other technology companies. He personally stole at least 8 million dollars in cryptocurrency. Spanish authorities reportedly seized 27 million dollars at his arrest at Palma airport in June 2024. Sentencing is set for August 21, 2026. Co-defendant Noah Michael Urban is already serving 10 years.

Analysis
The Buchanan plea, the second major Scattered Spider conviction, consolidates the DOJ's cooperation-driven prosecution strategy against The Com's social-engineering infrastructure. The DOJ press release is the authoritative primary source; CSO Online is a secondary rewrite. The 22-year statutory ceiling combined with a mandatory consecutive 2-year aggravated identity theft minimum and Urban's 10-year precedent makes a sentence of 10 or more years at the August 21 sentencing likely. The DOJ filing newly confirms $27 million seized at Palma airport, establishing Spanish-U.S. coordination that prior reporting had not detailed. A cooperation agreement, publicly unconfirmed, could pull Buchanan's sentence well below Urban's benchmark if he provides intelligence on other Com members.

1 sources

Scattered Spider co-conspirator pleads guilty - CSO Online