‘LulzSec’ computer hacking police raid address in Doncaster

The men, aged 24 and 20, were arrested in Mexborough, near Doncaster, and Warminster, Wiltshire, for conspiring to commit offences under the Computer Misuse Act 1990.

Scotland Yard said the arrests were part of a continuing investigation in collaboration with the FBI, South Yorkshire Police and other law enforcement bodies, into activities of Anonymous and LulzSec, especially in connection with suspected offences under the cover of online identity “Kayla”.

A spokesman said the Doncaster address was searched by police and computer equipment was removed for forensic examination. The men have been detained at police stations in South Yorkshire and central London.

The men have been detained at police stations in South Yorkshire and central London.

Detective Inspector Mark Raymond from the Metropolitan Police’s Central e-Crime Unit (PCeU), said: “The arrests relate to our inquiries into a series of serious computer intrusions and online denial-of-service attacks recently suffered by a number of multi-national companies, public institutions and government and law enforcement agencies in Great Britain and the United States.

“We are working to detect and bring before the courts those responsible for these offences, to disrupt such groups, and to deter others thinking of participating in this type of criminal activity.”

• In a separate but similar investigation into hacking two men were yesterday charged over online attacks by international hacking gang Anonymous, Scotland Yard said.

Christopher Weatherhead, 20, from Northampton, and Ashley Rhodes, 26, from Kennington, south London, have been charged with conspiracy to carry out an unauthorised act in relation to a computer.

Police had already charged a youth from Chester aged 17 and student Peter David Gibson, 22, from Hartlepool, in relation to the same offences.

All four will appear on bail at City of Westminster Magistrates Court on September 7.

On Tuesday the case of Jake Davis, 18, and Ryan Cleary, 19, accused of hacking into websites including that of the UK’s Serious Organised Crime Agency, was heard at Southwark Crown Court.

Davis, from the Shetland Islands, was arrested by officers from the Met Police’s e-crime unit as part of an investigation into hacking groups LulzSec and Anonymous.

He is said to use the online nickname “Topiary” and present himself as a spokesman for the two groups.

The teenager faces five charges, including conspiring to carry out a distributed denial of service (DDos) attack on the police agency. Such attacks see websites flooded with traffic to make them crash.

Davis is also charged with gaining unauthorised access to a computer system, encouraging or assisting offences, and with two counts of conspiracy to commit offences.

Cleary, from Wickford, Essex, who has been diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome since he was arrested at his family home on Monday June 20, is charged with conspiring with other people on or before that date to create a remotely-controlled network of zombie computers, known as a “botnet”, which crashes websites.

He is also alleged to have carried out attacks on or before June 20 against Soca, the British Phonographic Industry’s website, and the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry’s website, and with making, adapting or supplying a botnet for a DDos attack.

LulzSec has also been linked to hacking attempts on the NHS, Sony, and the Sun newspaper.

Davis and Cleary are due to appear at the court for a plea and case management on January 27.