The Department of Justice released this notice on Tuesday
(WEB HOST INDUSTRY REVIEW) — As part of an ongoing investigation, US authorities arrested 16 people on Tuesday in connection to major hacks, including an attack on PayPal last year, according to a report by Reuters.
The arrests come on the heels of a LulzSec attack on Murdoch-owned news sites on Monday.
The FBI arrested 14 people in Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, D.C., Florida, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Mexico and Ohio on their alleged involvement in the PayPal hacks, according a press release. Between ages 20 to 42, the accused allegedly conducted the attack on PayPal’s website in retaliation for suspending the accounts of WikiLeaks.
In December, the FBI raided a Texas-based web hosting company and seized a computer believed to be involved in the denial of service attacks targeting PayPal.
Charged with conspiracy, the 14 individuals, 11 men and two women, could face a maximum penalty of five years in prison if convicted. According to the press release, they are also charged with intentional damage to a protected computer, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. Each charge carries a $250,000 fine.
The other two arrests were in New Mexico and Florida. In New Mexico, authorities arrested an employee for a contractor for AT&T’s wireless service for accessing a computer without authorization. This arrest has been connected to LulzSec, the report says.
The other man was charged with illegally accessing Tampa Bay’s Infragard’s website and uploading malicious files. Both men are 21-years-old, according to the Telegraph.
In addition, British police arrested one person and Dutch authorities arrested four for cybercrimes related to other recent attacks.
According to the Telegraph, police arrested a 16-year-old in London under the Computer Misuse Act and suspected involvement in both Anonymous and LulzSec. London police arrested a 19-year-old hacker in June as well.
According to a press release by the Department of Justice, more than 75 searches have taken place in the United States as part of the ongoing investigations into these attacks.
With such high-profile targets, including the CIA, US Senate and Arizona law enforcement, and others, many believe it was only a matter of time before authorities tracked down some of the hackers of these groups. However, with the anonymous nature and obvious wide-reach of these groups, it will be difficult for authorities to stop the hacks all together.
To recap the major hacks by LulzSec, take a look at a 50-day timeline here.
About Nicole Henderson
Nicole Henderson writes full-time for the Web Host Industry Review where she covers daily news and features online, as well as in print. She has a bachelor of journalism from Ryerson University in Toronto, and has been writing for the WHIR since September 2010. You can find her on Twitter @NicoleHenderson.
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