UK orders seizure of 42 bitcoin from hacker behind 2020 twitter attack

UK orders seizure of 42 bitcoin from hacker behind 2020 twitter attack

A British court has ordered notorious 2020 Twitter breach hacker Joseph James O’Connor to surrender $5.4 million in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency assets tied to the high-profile cyberattack that compromised several global figures.

O’Connor, 26, who admitted to computer intrusion, wire fraud, and extortion in the United States, orchestrated the July 2020 hack that hijacked the accounts of Barack Obama, Joe Biden, Elon Musk, and other influential personalities to push fraudulent crypto schemes. The incident struck during the peak of the U.S. election season and forced Twitter—now X—to temporarily restrict verified users after hackers seized control of the platform’s top profiles, including Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, and Kim Kardashian.

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Arrested in Spain in 2021 and extradited to the U.S. after a High Court ruling, O’Connor was sentenced to five years in prison in 2023.

The United Kingdom’s Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) confirmed that the civil recovery order covers 42 Bitcoin and other crypto assets linked to the scam. Prosecutor Adrian Foster said the ruling underscores the CPS’s ability to stop criminals from profiting from illicit activities, even if the offences were not committed—or prosecuted—in Britain.

The seized cryptocurrency will be sold by a court-appointed trustee on behalf of the Crown.

UK orders seizure of 42 bitcoin from hacker behind 2020 twitter attack