British hacker Joseph James O’Connor, widely known as PlugwalkJoe, has been ordered to repay £4 million after orchestrating one of the most notorious social-media hacks in internet history.
O’Connor, who is serving a five-year sentence in the United States for cybercrime offences, was part of a group that compromised high-profile Twitter accounts belonging to Kim Kardashian, Kanye West, Barack Obama, Elon Musk, Joe Biden and others. The hackers used the hijacked accounts to push fake cryptocurrency “giveaways,” claiming victims’ money would be doubled.
One message posted from Bill Gates’ hacked account read: “Everyone is asking me to give back. You send $1,000, I send you back $2,000.”
The scam redirected unsuspecting followers to cryptocurrency wallets controlled by the group. O’Connor also threatened celebrities with the release of private photos and messages.
Twitter later confirmed the breach stemmed from social engineering attacks on employees with privileged access.
According to Metro Uk, O’Connor was extradited from Spain and jailed in the U.S. in 2023. The UK’s Crown Prosecution Service has now secured a recovery order for 42 Bitcoin and other assets linked to his crimes, valued at about £4.1 million.
