Two men were arrested on June 22 for a hack at Microsoft following a collaboration between the company and law enforcement agencies including the FBI, EUROPOL, EMSOU (East Midlands Special Operations Unit) and the National Cyber Crime Unit (NCCU).
The names of the two suspects have not been revealed, but British media reports say they are from Lincolnshire and Bracknell and are believed to be part of an international team that managed to break into Microsoft's network between January and March 2017.
Police raided their homes and seized computers and other evidence that could help in the investigation. One of the suspects is charged with obtaining unauthorized access to a computer, while the other was arrested for computer misuse offenses
Very little is known about the hack at this time, but Microsoft explained in a statement that the hackers were unable to access any of its customer data, noting that all of its systems were operational after the attack.
“Today’s action by the authorities in the UK is an important step… Stronger online security depends on the ability to detect and prosecute cybercriminals. This requires not only a strong technical capability but also a willingness to publicly acknowledge such issues and refer them to law enforcement,” a Microsoft spokesperson said
“No company is immune from cybercrime. There was no access to our customer data and we are confident in the integrity of our software and systems. We have implemented comprehensive measures to prevent, detect and respond to attacks.”
Authorities said investigations are underway in several other countries, and we may see new arrests from the same international gang that breached Microsoft's network.
It remains to be seen whether more information will be released about where the hackers have access, as researchers are still trying to determine the parts of the networks that the criminals reached.
