Tag: theft | Page 2

Did The Grand Theft Auto Hacker Do It With An Amazon Fire Stick While Under Police Custody?

December 22, 2023/in Computer Security

An 18-year-old hacker, Arion Kurtaj, a key member of the international cyber-criminal gang Lapsus$, has been sentenced to an indefinite hospital order after leaking clips of the highly anticipated Grand Theft Auto 6 (GTA 6). The sentencing, delivered at Southwark Crown Court, sheds light on the extent of the gang’s audacious attacks on tech giants, including Uber, Nvidia, and Rockstar Games, which collectively cost the affected companies nearly $10 million.

Kurtaj, who hails from Oxford and is diagnosed with autism, was deemed unfit to stand trial due to the severity of his condition. The court heard that despite being under police protection at a Travelodge hotel, he managed to breach Rockstar Games, the developers behind GTA, using unconventional methods.

While on bail for hacking Nvidia and BT/EE, Kurtaj reportedly continued his cyber activities. Using an Amazon Fire TV Stick, he allegedly mirrored his smartphone’s display to the hotel TV, transforming it into a makeshift monitor. Connecting a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse to his smartphone, he exploited the device’s “desktop mode” (DeX) capabilities, essentially turning it into a Linux computer. The Fire TV Stick, in this context, acted as a wireless HDMI cable via Miracast.

> He hacked Rockstar at a hotel using an Amazon Fire TV Stick while in police protection.

some people just have power levels barely comprehensible to the average person https://t.co/IZ5y5Y6XYU

— Aaron Ng (@localghost) December 21, 2023

Kurtaj’s actions resulted in the theft of 90 clips of the unreleased GTA 6, which he later posted, along with the source code, on a forum under the username “TeaPotUberHacker.” The hack reportedly cost Rockstar Games $5 million to recover from, in addition to thousands of hours of staff time.

In sentencing hearings, Kurtaj’s defense argued that the success of the GTA 6 trailer, released earlier this month and amassing 128 million views on YouTube in just four days, indicated minimal harm caused by the hack. However, the judge emphasized the real victims and harm caused by Kurtaj’s multiple cyberattacks, not only on corporations, but also on individuals.

The trial also saw…

Source…

ID Theft Service Resold Access to USInfoSearch Data – Krebs on Security

November 28, 2023/in Internet Security

One of the cybercrime underground’s more active sellers of Social Security numbers, background and credit reports has been pulling data from hacked accounts at the U.S. consumer data broker USinfoSearch, KrebsOnSecurity has learned.

Since at least February 2023, a service advertised on Telegram called USiSLookups has operated an automated bot that allows anyone to look up the SSN or background report on virtually any American. For prices ranging from $8 to $40 and payable via virtual currency, the bot will return detailed consumer background reports automatically in just a few moments.

USiSLookups is the project of a cybercriminal who uses the nicknames JackieChan/USInfoSearch, and the Telegram channel for this service features a small number of sample background reports, including that of President Joe Biden, and podcaster Joe Rogan. The data in those reports includes the subject’s date of birth, address, previous addresses, previous phone numbers and employers, known relatives and associates, and driver’s license information.

JackieChan’s service abuses the name and trademarks of Columbus, OH based data broker USinfoSearch, whose website says it provides “identity and background information to assist with risk management, fraud prevention, identity and age verification, skip tracing, and more.”

“We specialize in non-FCRA data from numerous proprietary sources to deliver the information you need, when you need it,” the company’s website explains. “Our services include API-based access for those integrating data into their product or application, as well as bulk and batch processing of records to suit every client.”

As luck would have it, my report was also listed in the Telegram channel for this identity fraud service, presumably as a teaser for would-be customers. On October 19, 2023, KrebsOnSecurity shared a copy of this file with the real USinfoSearch, along with a request for information about the provenance of the data.

USinfoSearch said it would investigate the report, which appears to have been obtained on or before June 30, 2023. On Nov. 9, 2023, Scott Hostettler, general manager of USinfoSearch parent Martin Data LLC shared a written…

Source…

China Accused of Massive IP Theft, AI Hacking by Five Eyes Intelligence Alliance

October 22, 2023/in Computer Security

China stands accused of stealing intellectual property and using artificial intelligence to hack and spy on other nations at an unprecedented scale.

As Reuters reports, the accusations come from the Five Eyes intelligence alliance—which comprises the United States, Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand—following meetings with private US companies in Silicon Valley. The theft is occurring across a wide range of sectors, covering everything from quantum technology and robotics to biotechnology and AI.

FBI Director Christopher Wray referred to China as an “unprecedented threat,” and said, “China has long targeted businesses with a web of techniques all at once: cyber intrusions, human intelligence operations, seemingly innocuous corporate investments and transactions … Every strand of that web had become more brazen, and more dangerous.”

Mike Burgess, the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation’s director-general, added: “The Chinese government is engaged in the most sustained scaled and sophisticated theft of intellectual property and expertise in human history.”

Chinese government spokesman Liu Pengyu responded to the accusations, stating, “We firmly oppose to the groundless allegations and smears towards China and hope the relevant parties can view China’s development objectively and fairly.”

Earlier this year, when Microsoft caught China spying on critical western infrastructure, the Chinese government responded by claiming it was just a “collective disinformation campaign” by the US and its allies.

This is the first time all members of Five Eyes have publicly called out China’s actions collectively. In response, the alliance is hoping both private industry and academia will help to counter the threats, which Wray describes as “a bigger hacking program than that of every other major nation combined.”

Source…