Razor Bust
Razor1911, one of the oldest and most notorious video game piracy groups, has been busted. The Feds finally nabbed Razor1911’s leader, 38-year-old Sean Breen, and sentenced him to a staggering 4-years in prison.
Breen created the group in 1991, eons before anyone even thought about game piracy; we’re talking pre-Wolfenstein. Over the years, Breen assembled a sprawling and devout network of pirates from Stockholm to Seattle; they’d pose as game reviewers or the editors of some new gaming magazine, in order get early code.
Once they got the goods, a team of crackers would circumvent the copyright protection wares. Then a team of distributors would release the stuff in password protected IRC chat rooms. At last count, there were more than 10,000 games in Razor1911’s treasure cove. The video game industry loses about $3 billion per year to pirates, and Razor1911 were the chief offenders. They were also the most brazen, running an elaborate website touting their feats - and producing their own razor-wielding superhero cartoons online.
But it turns out Breen was up to much more than these games. Shortly after being busted, he confessed to bilking Cisco Systems out of $600,000 worth of hardware. In an elaborate scheme, he posed as one of Cisco’s customers, and had the goods FedExed to a storefront he rented, specifically for this purpose, in Oakland. Once he got the stuff, he sold it cheap on the grey market.
But, despite this bust, surely the piracy will wage on…
Keep Reading
Most Popular

Why China is still obsessed with disinfecting everything
Most public health bodies dealing with covid have long since moved on from the idea of surface transmission. China’s didn’t—and that helps it control the narrative about the disease’s origins and danger.

Anti-aging drugs are being tested as a way to treat covid
Drugs that rejuvenate our immune systems and make us biologically younger could help protect us from the disease’s worst effects.

These materials were meant to revolutionize the solar industry. Why hasn’t it happened?
Perovskites are promising, but real-world conditions have held them back.

A quick guide to the most important AI law you’ve never heard of
The European Union is planning new legislation aimed at curbing the worst harms associated with artificial intelligence.
Stay connected

Get the latest updates from
MIT Technology Review
Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.