Criminal Charges Brought Against DraftKings Hacker

Prosecutors said on Thursday that criminal charges have been brought against one Joseph Garrison who attempted and succeeded, along with his accomplices, to steal $600,000 from across 1,600 accounts as part of attacks launched on the popular sportsbook operators in November 2022.

A similar attack had already taken place that same month against FanDuel. However, FanDuel argued that it had been able to withstand the attack and no consumer was affected.

DraftKings Responds to Latest Development in Wake of Attacks

Commenting on this case, DraftKings issued a statement that was shared with media outlets, including CNBC, which did original reporting of the case. In that statement, DraftKings said that the safety of its customers was of paramount importance to the company, and added:

We worked with law enforcement in catching the alleged bad actor(s), and we want to thank the Department of Justice, including the FBI and U.S. Attorney, Southern District of New York, for their prompt and effective action.

DraftKings

DraftKings has also confirmed that funds to the impacted users were restored. Investigators though were alerted and a chase for the culprits began. Garrison’s home was visited by authorities on February 23, with police executing a search warrant and finding a number of cell and computer devices that, upon investigation, were determined to have been used as the means of both perpetrating the attack and communication with co-conspirators.

“Fraud Is So Fun”

The case against Garrison is now building up. If he is found guilty of the litany of charges he faces, amongst which, a conspiracy to commit computer intrusions, unauthorized access to a protected computer to further intended fraud, unauthorized access to a protected computer, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, and wire fraud conspiracy, he may face up to 20 years of prison time.

These attacks come in the context of increasing interest in the sports gambling sector across the United States, which makes it all the more important for companies to ensure that they have impeccable security measures in place. In one of the images obtained from Garrison’s computer, the defendant says that “fraud is so fun.”