British Teen Released on Bail in Hacking Case

Posted June 27th, 2011 at 4:00 pm (UTC-5)
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British teenage hacker Ryan Cleary was released on bail Monday after agreeing to obey a curfew, wear an electronic tag and not access the Internet.

The teenager was arrested a week ago at his home in Wickford, England, on suspicion of having hacked into a national anti-crime agency and two other sites.

He was detained in the course of a Scotland yard-FBI investigation into an online hacking collective called Lulz Security, a group that claimed cyber attacks around the world, including against the CIA.

A lawyer for the 19-year-old has said that Cleary has cooperated fully with the police.

Since his arrest, Cleary was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome, a form of autism.

Meanwhile, the digital hacking group known as Lulz Security says it has disbanded.

The group gained international prominence for its ability to breach websites of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, Sony Corporation, the U.S. Senate and Britain's Serious Organised Crime Agency.

Lulz Security gave no reason for the decision to end its website hacking activity, which was announced Saturday on Twitter. But it is under investigation by law enforcement agencies in the United States, Britain and elsewhere.

In what appeared to be a final act, the group released a collection of plundered documents from the U.S. telecom company AT&T, an Irish detective agency and Internet company America On-Line.

In its announcement, Lulz Security said its “planned 50-day cruise has expired,” and it “must now sail into the distance.”