U.K. cybercrime raid yields suspect in U.S. Defense hacking

LONDON, March 6 (UPI) -- A man suspected of involvement in breaking into U.S. Department of Defense computers was among 57 arrested in England this week.

The United Kingdom's National Crime Agency (NCA) conducted 25 separate raids in England, Scotland and Wales in an operation named "Strike Week."

Suspects were arrested for cybercrimes including data theft, virus writing, intellectual property theft, offering of services to criminal groups and fraud. One unidentified suspect, 23, taken into custody in the Birmingham suburb of Sutton Coldfield, is believed to have been involved in a June Department of Defense data breach in which contact details for 800 people were stolen.

"It also included device information for approximately 34,400 devices, including IMEI numbers, which are the unique codes used to identify a mobile device. No sensitive data was obtained, and none of the data obtained could be used as personally identifiable information or compromise U.S. national security interests," the NCA said in a statement.

It added the hacker posted information online to demonstrate the breach was a success. A message on the website Pastebin called attention to the theft, with comments including, "We're in your bases, we control your satellites. The missiles shall rein upon thy who claim alliance, watch your heads. Department of Defense has no Defenses."

The FBI and London's Metropolitan Police aided in the arrests in Britain.