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Founding member of Lizard Squad pleads guilty to cyber-crimes

The founding member of Lizard Squad, a group of cyber-attackers that took credit for taking down the PlayStation Network in 2014, has plead guilty to cyber-crimes.

Chris Kerr, News Editor

December 22, 2017

1 Min Read
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A founding member of Lizard Squad, a group of cyber-attackers that took credit for taking down the PlayStation Network in 2014, has plead guilty to cyber-crimes.

As reported by the Chicago Tribune, Zachary Buchta confessed to being one of the group's founding members during his guilty plea, where he admitted to one count of conspiracy to commit damage to protected computers. 

The charge can often carry a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, but prosecutors are recommending a sentence of 2.5 years if Buchta co-operates with a planned investigation. 

Lizard Squad rose to prominence after disrupting the PlayStation Network with a distributed denial of service (DDOS) attack in August 2014. 

The group also managed to get a plane carrying then Sony Online Entertainment president John Smedley diverted to a different location by tweeting a bomb threat at American Airlines. 

Lizard Squad continued to hound Smedley after his move to H1Z1 developer Daybreak, and took responsibility for multiple DDOS attacks against the company. 

The serious nature of the crimes prompted the FBI to look into the matter, while the UK's National Crime Agency also begun its own investigation, and eventually managed to arrest five teens in connection with the attacks.

About the Author

Chris Kerr

News Editor, GameDeveloper.com

Game Developer news editor Chris Kerr is an award-winning journalist and reporter with over a decade of experience in the game industry. His byline has appeared in notable print and digital publications including Edge, Stuff, Wireframe, International Business Times, and PocketGamer.biz. Throughout his career, Chris has covered major industry events including GDC, PAX Australia, Gamescom, Paris Games Week, and Develop Brighton. He has featured on the judging panel at The Develop Star Awards on multiple occasions and appeared on BBC Radio 5 Live to discuss breaking news.

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