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Hacker Ordered to Pay Bail in Cryptocurrency

Hacker Ordered to Pay Bail in Cryptocurrency

In a surprising turn of events, cryptocurrency has found a new use within the legal system. A man has been ordered to pay $750,000 as bail in the form of cryptocurrency. He is accused of hacking the network of one of the biggest gaming corporations in the world.

What Happened?

The company, Electronic Arts (EA), is the brain behind some of the most popular games in the world including FIFA, Star Wars Battlefront and many, many more. Their assets are valued at over $8.5 billion. He tried to board a flight to Serbia in order to escape, but he was stopped and arrested at the San Francisco National Airport and apprehended by the authorities before he could board his plane.

The hacker, whose real name is Martin Marsich, appeared in court the following day. Marsich is a resident of Italy, but he holds dual citizenship of Serbia and Italy. He was charged with cybercrimes related to his illegal intrusion into the company network without permission.

According to an FBI affidavit, the video game company realized that they had not only been hacked, but the hacker had also managed to access almost 25,000 user accounts. These accounts allowed gamers to make in-game purchases so they could upgrade their games. Marsich cleverly gathered information from their computer system so he could buy more in-game currency that would allow him to make more purchases for his video games.

Moreover, he is also facing the charge of being an illegal black market seller. He has been selling the information he’s gathered and handed out access to online video games. The damage sustained can be valued at around $324,000, as said by EA.

Bitcoin Over USD

The court session was presided over by Magistrate Judge Corley who asked Marsich to post bail in cryptocurrency instead of regular money. The amount to be paid is $750,000. Marsich can pay using BTC or altcoins.

The development is an extraordinary development given the current context, perhaps the first time when a hacker has been asked to pay the fine by cryptocurrency.

While it might seem surprising, American judges are permitted by law to set bail terms based on their own understanding of the situation and their discretion. Marsich definitely has a huge amount of cryptocurrency at his disposal which makes the bail fitting. The case has risen to become of the most high-profile cases in the history of cryptocurrency.