Since 2015, a Chinese gaming website has been hacking Xbox accounts and selling the proceeds on the open market, according to a complaint filed by Microsoft in federal court on Friday.
iGSKY presents itself as a gaming service company, offering players a way to pay for in-game credits and rare items — but according to Microsoft, many of those credits were coming from someone else’s wallet. The complaint alleges that the company made nearly $2 million in purchases through hacked accounts and their associated credit cards, using purchases as a way to launder the resulting cash. On the site, cheap in-game points are also available for the FIFA games, Forza Horizon 3, Grand Theft Auto V, and Pokémon Go, among others.
“Microsoft is committed to providing customers with safe and secure online experiences,” a company spokesperson told The Verge. “We filed these lawsuits to protect our Xbox customers from the illegal trafficking of stolen property.”
Since iGSKY is based in China, it will be difficult to directly shut down the site — but the court can still make lift difficult. Judge Koh has already issued a temporary restraining order freezing the company’s domestic assets, including any PayPal accounts linked to the site. Further arguments are scheduled for next week.
https://www.theverge.com/2017/5/22/15676966/microsoft-igsky-gameest-xbox-account-hacked-points
iGSKY presents itself as a gaming service company, offering players a way to pay for in-game credits and rare items — but according to Microsoft, many of those credits were coming from someone else’s wallet. The complaint alleges that the company made nearly $2 million in purchases through hacked accounts and their associated credit cards, using purchases as a way to launder the resulting cash. On the site, cheap in-game points are also available for the FIFA games, Forza Horizon 3, Grand Theft Auto V, and Pokémon Go, among others.
“Microsoft is committed to providing customers with safe and secure online experiences,” a company spokesperson told The Verge. “We filed these lawsuits to protect our Xbox customers from the illegal trafficking of stolen property.”
Since iGSKY is based in China, it will be difficult to directly shut down the site — but the court can still make lift difficult. Judge Koh has already issued a temporary restraining order freezing the company’s domestic assets, including any PayPal accounts linked to the site. Further arguments are scheduled for next week.
https://www.theverge.com/2017/5/22/15676966/microsoft-igsky-gameest-xbox-account-hacked-points