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Hacker Who Disrupted Sony Gaming Firm Gets Federal Prison

A hacker who disrupted Sony Online Entertainment and other gaming companies has been sentenced to more than two years in federal prison.

Twenty-three-year-old Austin Thompson of Utah received the 27-month sentence on Tuesday in San Diego.

A hacker who disrupted Sony Online Entertainment and other gaming companies has been sentenced to more than two years in federal prison.

Twenty-three-year-old Austin Thompson of Utah received the 27-month sentence on Tuesday in San Diego.

Prosecutors said Thompson carried out a series of distributed denial-of-service computer attacks against Sony and other targets in 2013 and 2014.

The attacks flood computer servers with traffic, making them impossible to access and forcing technicians to take them offline for hours. Thompson was ordered to pay $95,000 to cover damages to Sony Online, which was based in San Diego at the time and is now called Daybreak Games.

In a plea agreement, Thompson said he’d announce an imminent attack on the Twitter account “DerpTrolling,” then carry it out.

Related: California Man Gets 26-Month Prison Sentence for DDoS Attacks

Related: IT Specialist Convicted on Cyber Hacking Charges Sentenced

Related: Operator of Codeshop Cybercrime Marketplace Sentenced to Prison

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