LulzSec, famed British hacktivist collective, have been dealt the longest jail sentences ever for hacking. The group of young hackers has been behind several advanced cyberattacks on institutions across various sectors.
Hacktivists Ryan Cleary, Ryan Ackroyd, Mustafa Al-Bassam and Jake Davis were sentenced on Thursday for widespread attacks. Their victims range from U.S. government agencies FBI and CIA to global electronics companies Sony and Nintendo. The hackers have stolen millions of people’s sensitive information including passwords, emails and credit card details.
At Southwark crown court in London, Judge Deborah Taylor said, “You cared nothing for the privacy of others but did everything you could through your computer activities to hide your own identities while seeking publicity.”
She added some of the news of their constant antagonizing “makes chilling reading.”
Along with stealing the personal data of millions, they shared stolen information on their website and also launched DDoS attacks to crash several websites. All together, they cost their targets millions of dollars. Taylor said that what they considered to be a game had real world consequences, the latest being jail time for up to 32 months.
All four members of the group were found guilty under Britain’s Computer Misuse Act of 1990.
Cleary, 21, known as ‘ViraL,’ pleaded guilty to six charges including hacking into U.S. Air Force computers at the Pentagon among others. He was sentenced to two years and eight months behind bars.
Ackroyd, 26, the ex-soldier who used the façade of a made up teenage girl named Kayla, was dealt 30 months.
Bassam, 18, was known online as tFlow. The straight-A student was given a sentence of 20 months suspended for two years and 300 hours of community service.
Twenty-year-old Davis, LulzSec’s head spokesperson, used the internet alias Topiary. He was handed 24 months in a juvenile institution.
Davis and Bassam had already pleaded guilty to launching attacks on several organizations.
Although LulzSec has been hit hard in the recent court proceedings, there are droves of other hackers and ‘hacktivists’ out there ready to reach any and all companies’ information. Make sure your company’s data is safe by finding the right security professionals through Tiro Security, a leading provider of information security jobs Los Angeles. Contact us to find out about our executive search options.