Microsoft, Nintendo hacker pleads guilty

After being charged with multiple computer misuse offences, a 24-year-old security researcher pleaded guilty in a court here for hacking into Microsoft and Nintendo servers and stealing confidential information.

Using an internal user name and password, Zammis Clark gained access to a Microsoft server in 2017 and he trespassed Nintendo's servers through Virtual Private Networks (VPNs).

Since 2017, Clark stole around 43,000 internal confidential copies of pre-released Windows versions and acquired 2,365 usernames and passwords from Nintendo's highly confidential game development servers, The Verge reported on Thursday.

Later, Clark also shared access to Microsoft's servers through an Internet Relay Chat (IRC) server chatroom, allowing other individuals also to access and steal confidential information from the servers.

"Police found the stolen files on Clark's home computer after a joint investigation involving Microsoft's cyber team, the FBI, EUROPOL and the NCA's National Cyber Crime Unit (NCCU)," said the report.

Clark's Microsoft intrusion ended when he uploaded malware onto Microsoft's network and he was arrested in June 2017. Nintendo discovered the breach later in 2018.

While Nintendo estimated the cost of damages between $913,000 and $1.8 million, Microsoft provided the court with a vague estimate of nearly $2 million in damages, the report said.