Over the holidays, Microsoft’s Xbox Live service and Sony’s PlayStation Network suffered a series of distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks. Today, an arrest has been made of an 18-year-old allegedly connected to the incidents.
The BBC reports that the man was apprehended in Southport, near Liverpool in the UK. The individual that has been detained has been charged also with providing false information to United States police agencies.
Specifically, the individual is accused of “swatting,” the practice of contacting the police with false information in order to elicit an armed response. According to Craig Jones of the South East Regional Organised Crime Unit, the calls were made via Skype.
Earlier this week, United States President Barack Obama proposed new measures to further combat cybercrime. This comes on the heels of not only the holiday gaming network attacks, but also an incursion and leak related to Sony Pictures and the hack of the United States Central Command Twitter account.
[Source: BBC]
Our Take
Arrests alone won’t stop DDoS attacks, but they are an important (and necessary) first step. Convictions will further drive the point home, as will education that DDoS attacks aren’t funny and do carry serious consequences. Most importantly, the fact that law enforcement can evidence the ability to track and apprehend those responsible will serve as an important deterrent.
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