Two men arrested for attempting to hack Microsoft

Laurent Giret

Two Britons have been arrested yesterday by the local authorities for attempting to hack into Microsoft’s network (via the BBC). The suspects are a 22-year-old from Sleaford and a 25-year-old from Bracknell, who are reportedly members of a bigger group that was looking to steal customer data from the Redmond giant.

“It is believed that the men were involved in repeated attempts to infiltrate the Microsoft network between January and March this year,” wrote the BBC. “Both were charged under the UK’s Computer Misuse Act that criminalises unauthorised access to computers.”

Tom Burt, Microsoft’s vice president and deputy general counsel of the Digital Crimes Unit told the BBC that the suspects did not succeed to access customer data. “We have comprehensive measures in place to prevent, detect, and respond to attacks,” he explained. “We also have specialist teams focused on working with law enforcement to identify people who attack either us or our customers, and we’re committed to fast and effective action against attackers.”