A hacking gang stole victims’ savings and tried to blackmail major companies including the maker of the best-selling Grand Theft Auto videogames, prosecutors claim. Arion Kurtaj, 18, and a 17-year-old who cannot be named for legal reasons are accused of being “key players” in the LapsusS hacking group, a trial at Southwark Crown Court in London has heard. The duo, aided by unknown associates, are alleged to have hacked the servers and data files of broadband provider BT and mobile operator EE before demanding a four million dollar ransom on August 1 2021. Kurtaj is further accused of targeting transport giant Uber, financial technology firm Revolut and Rockstar Games, developer of the Grand Theft Auto series, in quick succession in September 2022, the court has heard. It’s perfectly plain from the evidence that those involved in the attacks were totally serious in this endeavour of hacking companies and stealing valuable data from those companies with the intention of profiting from that, sometimes on a huge scale, whether by blackmail or fraud Prosecutor Kevin Barry He allegedly tried to blackmail Rockstar Games by threatening to “leak the stolen source code for the Grand Theft Auto sequel onto internet forums”, the indictment states. Kurtaj and the youth are also accused of hacking software company Nvidia in February 2022 before threatening to “release Nvidia Corporation’s intellectual property on to the web” if it did not pay them. In a closing speech to the jury on Monday, prosecutor Kevin Barry said: “The victims in this case, and they undoubtedly were victims, they were members of the public who suffered the SIM swap frauds and losses as a result of that. “There were also big corporations who were targeted and attacked. “It hasn’t been suggested by anyone that any of these attacks were just individuals out for larks and laughs. “It’s perfectly plain from the evidence that those involved in the attacks were totally serious in this endeavour of hacking companies and stealing valuable data from those companies with the intention of profiting from that, sometimes on a huge scale, whether by blackmail or fraud.” He said the jury has heard evidence from members of the public who had their data stolen during the BT/EE hack. “They found their lives, some of them, turned upside down with accounts accessed and emptied of savings,” he said. He said one man’s account on Coinbase, a cryptocurrency exchange platform, had £38,000 taken from it. Mr Barry said “major corporations” were also targeted by the hacking gang and “enormous disruption and costs were suffered by them” as a result. He added: “Make no mistake, in this case, members of the jury, that losses experienced by these companies were real, they were a direct consequence of the defendants’ actions and those of their associates.” He added: “Any loss they suffered through activity like this will ultimately be passed on to their customers, people like us.” He told jurors “each of the defendants has previous convictions for committing computer-enabled offences in the recent past”. Psychiatrists have assessed Kurtaj as unfit to stand trial so the jury must decide whether he committed the acts alleged against him. Kurtaj is charged with 12 offences, including six counts under the Computer Misuse Act, three counts of blackmail and two counts of fraud. The youth is charged with two counts of blackmail, two counts of fraud and three counts under the Computer Misuse Act, relating to the BT/EE and Nvidia allegations. He previously pleaded guilty to one offence under the Computer Misuse Act and one count of fraud. The prosecutor is due to finish his speech on Tuesday.

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Rasmus Hojlund has not been ruled out of Manchester United’s Premier League game at Everton on Sunday, but Christian Eriksen will play no part. United boss Erik ten Hag has issued an injury update on the Denmark pair, who missed out for their country during the international break. Hojlund (muscle strain) and Eriksen (knee) both sustained injuries in United’s previous top-flight fixture, a 1-0 home win against Luton on November 11. Ten Hag told United’s official website: “Christian will take a little bit longer. It will take some weeks until he will return. “Rasmus Hojlund, not too bad. Everton will be a close finish, but we’re working on that. “We’re not sure if he can make that but, hopefully, in the next week, he will return to the squad.” Both players were withdrawn in the closing stages against Luton. United initially confirmed Eriksen would be out for a month, while Hojlund was hoping to return before the end of November. Should Hojlund fail a fitness test before Sunday’s game at Everton, he could make a timely return to action in next Tuesday’s Champions’ League fixture against Galatasaray in Istanbul. Fellow forward Marcus Rashford will miss that must-win group game through suspension following his red card in the recent defeat in Copenhagen. United have confirmed that Ten Hag will serve a touchline ban at Everton this weekend having accumulated three yellow cards. Read More Ben Curry has career goal of playing for England alongside twin brother Tom ‘Grass ceiling’ facing black footballers highlighted by new diversity data Wales boss Rob Page hails ‘great opportunity’ after Euro 2024 play-off draw