British hacker who hijacked Elon Musk’s Twitter account told to repay £4m in Bitcoin
Cyber criminal behind major celebrity Twitter hack must repay millions
- Joseph James O’Connor, 26, who orchestrated a high-profile 2020 Twitter hack, has been ordered to repay £4.1 million in Bitcoin.
- O’Connor pleaded guilty in the United States to charges including computer intrusion, wire fraud, and extortion, receiving a five-year prison sentence in 2023.
- The hack compromised numerous celebrity and public figure accounts, including those of Elon Musk, Joe Biden, and former President Obama, to solicit Bitcoin from followers.
- Britain's Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) secured a civil recovery order to seize 42 Bitcoin and other crypto assets linked to O’Connor's scam.
- The CPS stated its ability to ensure criminals do not benefit from their actions, even if not convicted in the UK, with the seized assets to be liquidated by a court-appointed trustee.