The hackers we see in movies usually sit at a large table with a set of state-of-the-art screens and systems in front of them. But is this the case in real life?
You’ll probably be surprised to hear that all you need to steal and leak clips from an unreleased game like the highly anticipated Grand Theft Auto VI is an Amazon Fire TV stick, smartphone, keyboard, and mouse. Arion Kurtaj, a member of the hacking group Lapsus$, did just that when he was released on bail for allegedly hacking NVIDIA, BBC News reports.
The 18-year-old infiltrated Rockstar Games, which developed GTA VI, and went so far as to announce himself as “offensive” on the company’s Slack channel. The crime scene was a Travelodge hotel in England where authorities placed him.
Kurtaj was placed in the hotel after hackers posted detailed information about him and his family online, compromising his safety. No internet access was allowed while there, but used the Fire TV Stick to get around this.
Further details of Kurtaj’s illegal act came to light after a seven-week trial was found guilty of hacking Rockstar, neobank Revolut and Uber. A 17-year-old boy was also found guilty but, unlike Kurtaj, was released on bail. Both people were autistic, and the psychiatrists decided that they were unfit to be tried. This meant that the jury was only assessing whether they believed crimes had been committed, not whether they were committed with the intent to commit a crime.
Lapsus$ are believed to consist mostly of young people from Brazil and the United Kingdom. Kurtaj and the unnamed 17-year-old are two of seven members arrested in the UK. Lapsus$ also allegedly hacked Samsung, T-Mobile and Microsoft between 2021 and 2022. Although the group has demanded a ransom, it is unclear how much profit it has made from these exploits.
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