LulzSec Spokesman Nabbed, Police Say

19-Year-Old Suspect Said to Use the Online Handle Topiary Eric Chabrow (GovInfoSecurity) • July 27, 2011

Scotland Yard Wednesday nabbed what it characterizes as one of the spokesmen of the hacking groups Anonymous and LulzSec (see LulzSec: Senate, Sony Hackers Profiled), British authorities report.

Metropolitan Police Service's Police Central e-Crime Unit only identified the 19-year-old suspect by his online nickname, Topiary.

Police arrested the suspect at a Shetland Islands residence, which was searched. Authorities also searched another residence in Lincolnshire. Police also are questioning a 17-year-old male, but he had not been arrested.

Wednesday's operation is part of a continuing investigation into network intrusions and distributed denial of service attacks against a number of international business and intelligence agencies by what is believed to be the same hacking group.

The arrest of the alleged spokesman comes a week and a day after American authorities arrested 14 purported members of the hacking group Anonymous (see FBI Nab 14 in 'Anonymous' Hack). Last month, British police arrested another 19-year-old man it contends is a LulzSec member (see Arrested UK Teen Tied to Hacker Groups).