Former Philly doctor hacked into old high school classmates' social media accounts, police say
Peter Grossman, who graduated from Delran High School in 2005, made copies of more than 2,000 of his former classmates' photos, police say.
A former Philadelphia doctor hacked into the cell phone, email, and social media accounts of several former classmates at Burlington County's Delran High School, from which he graduated in 2005, and then made copies of their photos, authorities said.
Peter Grossman, 29, who lives in Center City, was charged with identity theft and invasion of privacy. He was previously a physician at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia. Officials there confirmed he was a former employee but would not offer further details Monday.
Grossman made digital copies of more than 2,000 photos — at times correctly guessing his former classmates' passwords by looking at information they had posted on social media, the Burlington County Prosecutor's Office said.
"This case presents an excellent warning concerning passwords, and why they must be complex in order to withstand attempts by hackers and anybody else to gain access to private accounts," Prosecutor Robert D. Bernardi said. "Using the name of a child or some other known personal detail will often result in a password that is vulnerable to being hacked."
One of Grossman's former classmates alerted police in September that she had been hacked, and that several of her friends had similar concerns, the prosecutor's office said.
The office did not specify how it identified Grossman as a suspect, but said investigators searched his Philadelphia home and found the stolen images, which showed 25 different women. Authorities have identified 12 of the women, but are seeking to identify the rest.
Grossman was released after a recent hearing at Superior Court in Mount Holly, and his case will be presented to a grand jury, authorities said.
Anyone who has further information can call Delran Police at 856-461-4498, extension 149.