Coach's hack of student-athlete personal photos has potential victims in NC

Former student-athletes from North Carolina are suing a former Baltimore Ravens and University of Michigan assistant coach accused of orchestrating a massive cyber hack. Matthew Weiss faces 24 federal charges for allegedly stealing intimate photos and videos from student accounts nationwide.
Posted 4/23/2025, 10:12:50 PM Updated 4/24/2025, 12:58:22 PM

FIELD. AS WE LEARN MORE, WE'LL

LET YOU KNOW.

>> NOT EVERYONE IS OKAY.

THANK YOU, BRIAN. THIS NEW

LAWSUIT CLAIMS FORMER STUDENT

ATHLETES AND NORTH CAROLINA

HAD THEIR SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS

HACKED AND ACCUSES A COACH OF

BEING BEHIND IT. ALL THE SUIT

CLAIMS PRIVATE INFORMATION,

INCLUDING INTIMATE PHOTOS AND

VIDEOS HAVE BEEN EXPOSED.

WRAL INVESTIGATES WENT THROUGH

THE SUIT PAGE BY PAGE. WE ARE

ASKING HOW THIS COULD HAVE

HAPPENED AND HOW MANY STUDENTS

COULD HAVE BEEN HACKED. WRAL

INVESTIGATES KEELY. ARTHUR IS

LIVE NOW IN CHILE. THIS SUIT

SAYS THOUSANDS OF STUDENTS

ACROSS THE COUNTRY COULD BE

VICTIMS.

>> DEBORAH, THAT'S RIGHT.

THIS IS A NATIONAL SITUATION

WITH SOME DISTURBING LOCAL

TIES. SO WE HAVE THE U.S.

ATTORNEYS WHO SPOKE WITH US

AND SAY THEY NOW HAVE REASON

TO BELIEVE THAT STUDENTS FROM

SHAW AND WAKE TECH MAY BE

VICTIMS OF THIS. THEY HAVE

ASKED THOSE SCHOOLS TO PRESERVE

CERTAIN RECORDS. MEANWHILE,

2 STUDENTS FROM HIGH POINT

UNIVERSITY TODAY SAY THEY

CERTAINLY ARE VICTIMS OF THIS.

THEY FILED SUIT AND THEY ALSO

SAY THEIR UNIVERSITY FOUND

THEM.

>> NOT A WISE. A FORMER

BALTIMORE RAVENS AND UNIVERSITY

OF MICHIGAN ASSISTANT FOOTBALL

COACH. HE'S ACCUSED OF HACKING

INTO THE ACCOUNTS OF

150,000 PEOPLE SEARCHING FOR

INTIMATE PHOTOS AND VIDEO.

AND THIS IS A

ASSAULT.

>> WE ARE CALLING THIS A

DIGITAL FORM OF ASSAULT OF A

CYBER FORMAL ASSAULT. MEGAN

BULL NANI AND LISA AS HER

WEIDENFELLER SAY THEIR CLIENTS

FROM HIGH POINT UNIVERSITY.

>> RECEIVED LETTERS FROM THE

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE SAYING

THEIR PRIVATE INFORMATION HAD

BEEN EXPOSED. THERE ISN'T AN

OVERARCHING FEELING OF THE

TRAIL THAT THESE VICTIMS HAVE

COMMUNICATED TO US THAT THEY

FEEL FROM THERE. A UNIVERSITY.

FROM THEIR COLLEGE THAT WAS

SUPPOSED TO KEEP THEIR

INFORMATION SAFE.

AND THEY FAILED IN THAT.

WE REACHED OUT TO HIGH POINT

UNIVERSITY. THEY HAVE YET TO

RESPOND. ACCORDING TO THE

LAWSUIT FROM 2015, THROUGH 2023

WEISS IS ACCUSED OF GETTING

INTO AN ATHLETIC TRAINING

SYSTEM USED BY COLLEGES ACROSS

THE COUNTRY TO STORE

INFORMATION ABOUT STUDENT

ATHLETES. HE'S ACCUSED OF

DOWNLOADING ATHLETE'S PERSONAL

INFORMATION AND USING THAT

INFORMATION TO HACK INTO THEIR

SOCIAL MEDIA EMAIL AND ICLOUD

ACCOUNTS. THAT'S WHAT'S BEEN SO

STUNNING FOR US IS THAT WE ARE

HEARING FROM STUDENTS FROM ALL

OVER THE COUNTRY. THERE'S

CONCERN THAT PEOPLE DON'T KNOW

THEIR VICTIMS AND ARE

DISREGARDING THESE LETTERS

BEING SENT BY THE DEPARTMENT

OF JUSTICE. SO WHEN THEY'RE

GETTING THESE EMAILS, THEY

THINK I DON'T KNOW, DISMISS

MR. WEISS, IS THIS A SCAM?

IT ASKED THEM TO CLICK ON LINKS

IN THE EMAIL AND WE'RE ALL

ENCOURAGED NOT TO CLICK ON

LINKS. YOU KNOW.

>> A BUYER EMPLOYERS. SO

THEY'VE DISREGARDED IT.

>> SO WHY SAYS ATTORNEY AS WELL

AS THE COMPANY BEHIND THAT

ATHLETIC TRAINING SYSTEM DID

NOT RESPOND TO OUR REQUEST FOR

COMMENT. MEANWHILE, WAKE TECH

SAYS THEY'RE LOOKING INTO THIS

SHOW UNIVERSITY. ALSO NOT

RESPONDING TO US, BUT WE KNOW

THIS IS AN ONGOING AND

CERTAINLY DISTURBINGLY

DEVELOPING SITUATION. WE WILL

UPDATE YOU AS WE LEARN MORE