Taipei prosecutors have indicted 12 people in a case involving national security allegations and a large-scale personal data leak, saying the lead suspect bought 51.69 million records on the dark web using 5,000 USDT. The Taipei District Prosecutors Office said on Aug. 6 that Huang Po-wei, Wang Da-wei and others were charged under Taiwan’s Personal Data Protection Act, National Security Act and the Anti-Corruption Act.
Prosecutors said Huang allegedly purchased the data from a seller using the handle David Jack on the dark web forum BreachForums. The transaction, according to the indictment, involved 5,000 USDT and covered 28.12 million labor and health insurance records plus 23.57 million household registration records, for a combined total of about 51.69 million personal records belonging to people in Taiwan.
Prosecutors say the data was turned into an illegal database
According to the investigation, Huang and Wang discovered the sale listing on BreachForums in March 2023. After obtaining the records, prosecutors said the two built a large illegal database and made it available for their own use and for others to query over an extended period.
Case includes disclosure of personal data tied to public figures
Prosecutors said Wang operated a Threads account under the name "night_high_hacker," while Huang used the Facebook alias "Cao Nima." The indictment alleges that the pair repeatedly used the acquired data to publish personal information such as ID numbers and addresses belonging to public figures including NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang and Taipei City Councilor Miao Poya.
The filing also says Huang, after receiving a traffic violation ticket, called a police station, disclosed the handling officer’s personal information and made threats. Prosecutors further alleged that Huang accepted requests from others to illegally search for and distribute personal information belonging to at least 78 people.
Investigators also allege contact with Chinese officials
Beyond the personal data offenses, prosecutors said the investigative team found that Huang became acquainted with Chinese officials in 2023. He is accused of working with Shih Liang-yen, then secretary to Yunlin County Magistrate Chang Li-shan, to provide Chinese officials with undisclosed government materials, including a non-public itinerary for Chang’s visit to Japan, in alleged violation of the National Security Act.
Prosecutors also said Huang and his cousin Huang Yi-kai were suspected of using a relationship with Tseng Peng-fei, a police officer at Taipei City Police Department’s Zhongzheng Second Precinct, to request illegal searches of vehicle registration data. The indictment says they twice attempted to offer cash as compensation.
USDT identified as the payment tool in the transaction
Prosecutors said Huang and Wang had technical capabilities but used those skills over a long period to illegally collect and spread a large volume of personal data across Taiwan, while also maintaining contact with forces outside Taiwan, conduct the office said seriously harmed national security and personal privacy.
For sentencing, prosecutors asked the court to impose heavier punishment on Huang for offenses including violations of the Personal Data Protection Act, the National Security Act and bribery-related charges, with a combined sentence request of more than 13 years in prison. For Wang, prosecutors recommended a sentence of more than four years.
The indictment states that the personal data deal was completed on a dark web forum and that 5,000 USDT was used as consideration paid to the seller. The report noted that USDT, one of the most widely circulated U.S. dollar stablecoins globally, was identified in this case only as the payment instrument. Prosecutors framed the core of the case as illegal personal data trading, cybercrime and conduct suspected of endangering national security, rather than the payment tool itself.