On the new NBC News series Dateline: On Assignment, correspondent Cynthia McFadden travels to Romania to interview international expert hackers and those who try to fight them like Madalin Dumitru, founder and CEO of CSD Cyber Smart Defence. Dumitru tells McFadden that “the businesses of internet scamming and hacking are ‘booming’ in Romania,” especially in the remote town of Râmnicu Vâlcea.
Râmnicu Vâlcea aka “Hackerville” has become known for its population of EBay and Craigslist scammers. They “steal thousands of dollars per transaction from foreign buyers.” Many of the young men who have become rich from hacking spend their money on luxury cars. According to a Wired article, “Expensive cars choke the streets of Râmnicu Vâlcea’s bustling city center—top-of-the-line BMWs, Audis, and Mercedes driven by twenty- and thirtysomething men sporting gold chains and fidgeting at red lights.” Dateline: On Assignment airs Sundays at 7pm on NBC, to compete with 60 Minutes on CBS.
