Biography: Before his rise to prominence, Alexey Pertsev attended Maritime State University, earning a specialist degree in computer and information systems security. In 2017, he joined security firm Digital Security as a penetration tester. After his time as a cybersecurity professional, Pertsev co-founded cybersecurity firm PepperSec. Following that, he became an open-source code contributor to Tornado Cash, an Ethereum-based noncustodial cryptocurrency mixer — which is what brought Pertsev to the limelight. In August 2022, Pertsev was arrested for his contributions to Tornado Cash after government officials alleged North Korean hacking groups had processed over $1 billion in stolen funds through the mixer. Shortly after that, Vitalik Buterin admitted using Tornado Cash to send money to those affected by the war in Ukraine. Pertsev has claimed to have helped over 40,000 users obfuscate more than 150,000 transactions.