According to AT&T’s Chief Security Officer Edward Amoroso, revenues from cybercrime is around $1 trillion annually. With the hip hop industry generating $10 billion annually, according to Forbes Magazine; the music industry needs to protect themselves from cybercrime more than ever.

A company that the music industry can utilize to protect themselves against cybercrime is LIGATT Security International LSI; which is a leading provider of hi-tech crime investigations through supplying main
frame penetration testing.

We spoke to CEO of LSI Gregroy Evans about the importance of the music industry needing to protect themselves from cybercrime and the services the LSI provides.

Crème Magazine: Tell us about the mission of LIGATT Security International?

Gregory Evans: We want to be recognized as the world’s leader in computer security, cybercrime investigation and most of all “The World’s #1 Hackers.”

Crème Magazine: What specific products and services do you offer to your clients?

Gregory Evans: We offer a full line of products that we have created in less than a year. These products include:

1. Tattletell - a service that allows individuals and law enforcement to be notified when an Internet Protocol (IP) address is online or offline through email notification.

2. Portsnitch - a software that checks to see if your computer has vulnerabilities and open ports a hacker may be able to enter.

3. Boobytrap- a web-based service in the world that will detect “who” installed spyware on an individual’s computer.

4. Locate PC - an invisible software that runs through a person’s computer that will track your computer if it’s stolen.

5. Recon - a program that will monitor your outside network to find any vulnerabilities (holes) that hackers will use to gain access to your network or computer.

6. IPsnitch - combines two powerful programs in one. The first consists of email “spoofing,” which allows you to send an email to anyone you like and have any email address your prefer show up in the recipient’s inbox. The second tool allows the individual to obtain anyone’s IP address.

7. Spoofnet- allows an individual to bypass company firewalls.

Crème Magazine: Who are some celebrity clients and companies that you’ve worked with to protect their identity and company information?

Gregory Evans: Ludacris, Jim Carrey, the City of Compton and “Big Papa” from “The Real Housewives of Atlanta”

Crème Magazine:  You said that cybercrime is bigger than hip-hop. Can you expound on that for us and address how it’s affecting the hip-hop industry?

Gregory Evans: More and more entertainers are losing tens of thousands of dollars in album sales when their albums are leaked to the public months before their scheduled release dates. The reason why is because the artists are under the impression that someone within their camp is releasing the music.

For example, if I produce a track one day with only three people in attendance when doing so, then the next day it’s on the Internet, a person would automatically assume that it was one of the people in the studio [at the time it was recorded]. But little do they know, a hacker was already in the network.

As soon as the track was downloaded, the hacker put that information on the Internet. Believe me when I tell you that a hacker can control your record sells more than a program director. How? Hit me up and let me show you. Artists need to have more secured networks.

Crème Magazine: Being a former hacker; how easy is it to hack into someone’s computer?

Gregory Evans: It is a lot harder these days. It is nothing like in the movies or on television.  Although, I have been able to break into recording studios, entertainers and even a city in less than five minutes.  With Spyware there is no hacking any more.

I can send a person an email with a link in it and when the person clicks the link, it will install spyware on their machine.  This means that everything they do on the computer is being reordered and emailed to me.  For example their usernames, passwords, account numbers, instant messages, emails sent and received and anything else you do on a computer.  So there is no hacking anymore.

Crème Magazine: Other than monetary gain what’s the mindset of a person who hacks into some ones personal computer?

Gregory Evans: Besides monetary gains, hackers like to be nosey. Men and women who that think that their mate may be cheating hire hackers to find out.

Crème Magazine:  With the gossip blogs becoming so popular during the last five years, do you know if they’re in partnership with hackers to obtain private information from celebrities’ computers to post on their sites?

Gregory Evans: Yes! We posted a press release two years ago about that. We talked about how paparazzi were hiring computer hackers to break into celebrities’ computers to still personal information, especially pictures and videos. How do you think the trash magazines end up with “exclusive” photos?

Crème Magazine: If a music executive or Artists and Repertoire (A&R) agent is reading this right now, what necessary and simple steps would you give them to protecting their artists from becoming a victim of hackers?

Gregory Evans: The first thing is: do not trust your Information Technology (IT) manager! IT managers are not security people.  An IT manager to a security expert, like myself, is like a paralegal to a attorney or a nurse to a doctor.  An IT manager’s job is to network the computers, not hack into them.

Secondly, hire a company like LIGATT who have real hackers so they can find all the vulnerabilities in your network.

Lastly, make sure the studios that your artists are recording in have had a real security audit.  Studios will have metal detectors, armed security guards, security cameras even panic buttons to the police department, but they do not have any computer security set up.  I do not mean Nortons Anti-virus or firewalls.
Crème Magazine: Does software such as Norton and McAfee-Antivirus protect one’s computer from hackers?

Gregory Evans: They will protect your computer from amateur hackers or an IT manager, but from the real thing like me – hell no!

Crème Magazine: Anything else you’d like to add?

Gregory Evans: An article came out about two months ago that said cybercrime generates more money than drug trafficking.  See this is big business. Every six seconds a personal computer is hacked.  Only one out of 10,000 hi-tech hustlers worldwide ever get caught. 

As a hacker you can make NBA-owner figures. Look at the three hackers who broke into TJ Max/Marshals and stole 40 million credit cards. They charged more than $200 million in less than a year. Name a rapper or rap group that did that in one year. I watch movies like “American Gangster” where they brag about Frank making more than a $1 million a week. Hell, I did that between 1996 and 1997 before the feds came in.