UK cyber police and FBI arrest Merseyside man for Christmas Sony and Xbox hack

An 18-year-old man from Merseyside has been arrested this morning, Friday 16th January on suspicious of cyber crime offences including the Sony and Xbox hack which disabled online services on Christmas Day, making it difficult for users to log on and ‘swatting’ where SWAT teams in the United States are scrambled to hoax ‘major incidents’ 

Officers from the South East Regional Organised Crime Unit (SEROCU) Cyber Crime Unit, supported by Titan ROCU (North West Regional Organised Crime Unit), have arrested a man from Southport as part of an investigation into ‘swatting’ and computer hacking offences including a denial of service attack of Sony Playstation and Xbox systems in 2014 

‘Swatting’ is a term used to describe criminal activity by an individual or group who knowingly provides false information to law enforcement agencies in the USA, suggesting that a threat exists at a particular location so that police respond with tactical units. Making false threats drains law enforcement resources and can cause significant distress or physical injury to first responders or victims.

A number of electronic and digital devices were seized in the arrest and are to be examined by SEROCU’s Cyber Crime Forensic and eForensics Unit.

Craig Jones, Head of the Cyber Crime Unit at SEROCU, said:

“This investigation is a good example of joint law enforcement cooperation in relation to a type of criminality that is not restricted by any geographical boundaries.

“We are still at the early stages of the investigation and there is still much work to be done. We will continue to work closely with the FBI to identify those to who commit offences and hold them to account.

“Offences referred to as ‘swatting’ involve law enforcement forces in the United States receiving hoax calls via Skype for a major incident in which SWAT teams were dispatched.

“We are pursuing cyber criminals using the latest technology and working with businesses and academia to further develop specialist investigative capabilities to protect and reduce the risk to the public.

“Cyber crime is an issue which has no boundaries and affects people on a local, regional and global level.

“I would like to urge everyone to check their home and business computer security and follow the advice available on sites such as cyberstreetwise.com and getsafeonline.org.

“Finally I would ask anyone who has information in regards to cyber offences to report them to Action Fraud at www.actionfraud.police.uk or anonymously calling Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or online at www.crimestoppers-uk.org.”