Four hackers charged with stealing Xbox One secrets

Four hackers, ages 18 to 28, have been charged with stealing Microsoft intellectual property related to Xbox technology. They would also have obtained defense documents and they would have illegally distributed games.

The three Americans and the Canadian managed to break into the networks of Microsoft, Epic Games, Valve, Zombie Studios and the US military between January 2011 and March 2014, according to the indictment. They used sql injections, and usernames and passwords that they got their hands on.

They managed to get their hands on source code, technical specifications and other documents about the Xbox One, while that console had not yet been released at the time. They also obtained intellectual property related to Xbox Live. According to the prosecutor, the technology is worth between 100 and 200 million dollars. Zombie Studios involved the theft of simulation software for the US military’s Apache helicopter. In addition, they are suspected of having offered early versions of the games Gears of War 3 and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 on the internet, even before the release of these games.

In total, the American justice claims to have seized money and assets related to the criminal activities with a value of more than $ 620,000, converted EUR 491,400 from the four. A fifth hacker has been arrested in Australia in this case.

The four are charged individually and as a group with computer fraud, copyright infringement, email fraud, identity theft and trade secret theft. The verdict will follow in January 2015, with the hackers facing up to five years in prison.