A 22-year-old man with alleged ties to the hacking group Lizard Squad, which claimed responsibility for the attack on Sony and Microsoft on Christmas Day, has been arrested in London after an investigation into PayPal thefts.
Thames Valley Police detained the man, named Vinnie Omar, on Tuesday after raiding his home. He was then jailed on “suspicion of fraud by false representation and Computer Misuse Act offences.”
Omari, who hails Twickenham, South-West London, told the Daily Dot in an email, “They took everything… Xbox One, phones, laptops, computer USBs, etc.”
Sky News interviewed the man about the hacking group just days before his arrest, where he was cited as a “computer security analyst.” After the Omari interview, independent security reporter Brian Krebs posted to his blog that Omari and a Finnish teenager named Julius Kivimäki were both members of the hacking group.
Krebs said: “Both of these individuals [Omari and Kivimäki] may in fact be guilty of nothing more than taking credit for other peoples’ crimes. But I hope it’s clear to the media that the Lizard Squad is not some sophisticated hacker group.”
The FBI is also reportedly investigating a member of the Lizard Squad named “ryanc” or Ryan, whom they also believe to be a Finnish teenager.
Omari was released from jail on Tuesday, and charges have yet to be filed.
On December 25, subscribers to Microsoft’s Xbox Live and Sony PlayStation’s PSN reported a system disruption with online services, leading to a reaction by representatives for both companies.
Xbox Live said on its online forum, “We’re aware that some of you are experiencing trouble signing in to Xbox Live, and we want you to know we’re working to address this as quickly as we possibly can. Thanks for your patience!”
The PlayStation Network also said of the disruption: “We are aware that some users are experiencing difficulty logging into the PSN. We will update this article with any changes that occur in regards to this issue. Thank you for your patience.”
After the network crash on Christmas Eve, Lizard Squad tweeted, “Jingle bells jingle bells xbox got ran … oh my fun it is to troll of you morons … hey!”
Lizard Squad later tweeted, “WHY DO YOU GUYS WANT TO PLAY ON YOUR CONSOLE GO SPEND TIME W YOUR FAM ITS CHRISTMAS #LizardSquad “
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