FBI arrests suspect over Sony hacking
The FBI on Thursday arrested a member of the LulzSec hacking group suspected over a massive cyberattack earlier this year on Japanese electronics giant Sony, officials said.
FBI agents arrested the suspect, named as Cody Kretsinger, 23, of Phoenix, Arizona, "without incident," said US Attorney in Los Angeles Andre Birotte and Steven Martinez, head of the FBI’s Los Angeles office.
Kretsinger was due in court in Phoenix, Arizona during the day, when authorities will request that he be transferred to Los Angeles to face prosecution, they said in a joint statement.
He has been charged with conspiracy and the unauthorized impairment of a protected computer, and could face up to 15 years in prison if convicted, they said.
Sony's PlayStation Network, Qriocity music streaming service and Sony Online Entertainment were targeted by hackers beginning in April in cyberattacks that resulted in one of the biggest data breaches since the advent of the Internet.
Over 100 million accounts were affected and Sony said it could not rule out that millions of credit card numbers may have been compromised. It has since restored its online services.
The cyberattacks threatened to cause deep damage to Sony's brand image and the company's efforts to link its gadgets to an online network of games, movies and music.
(c) 2011 AFP
