An 18-year-old hacker from Wisconsin, identified only as J.G., has pleaded guilty to charges of stealing over $600,000 from DraftKings by hacking into the online accounts of more than 1,000 registered players. In November 2022, J.G. allegedly stole login and password information from over 1,600 DraftKings members and used this information to hack into over 60,000 accounts on the online sports betting platform.
According to federal prosecutors in Manhattan, J.G. sent the stolen login information to other individuals who then used it to withdraw over $600,000 from around 1,600 accounts. This process, known as credential stuffing, was openly admitted by J.G., who texted one of his co-conspirators saying “Fraud is fun” and that he was “addicted to seeing money” in his account. When investigators searched his home in February 2023, they allegedly found a series of programs used for credential stuffing.
The investigation also found that J.G. had stolen more than $2.1 million before his 18th birthday, making around $15,000 per day between 2018 and 2021. He pled guilty to a count of conspiring to commit computer intrusion, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.
DraftKings confirmed the hacking event but did not provide any names in the suit. However, the company reimbursed all the stolen money from customers. Additionally, J.G. was charged with alleged swatting, which involved making hoax calls to emergency services. It is believed that he paid people with Bitcoin to make fake bomb-threat phone calls to his high school.
In unrelated news, DraftKings recently unveiled its new Progressive Parlay feature aimed at the fantasy gaming market. This follows the operator’s launch in Maine’s first weekend of regulated sports betting via a partnership with the Passamaquoddy Tribe and the publishing of its Q3 results showcasing strong performance.