Operation Buccaneer

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On December 11, 2001, in an international operation known as Operation Buccaneer, law enforcement agents in six countries targeted 62 people suspected of software piracy, with leads in twenty other countries.

U.S. law enforcement agents, led by the United States Customs Service, raided MIT, the University of California, Los Angeles, the University of Oregon, Duke and Purdue, as well as several software companies. Raids were also conducted in Britain, Australia, Finland, Norway and Sweden. Many computers were seized and people questioned.

Five people were arrested in England; in the United States, no arrests were made on the day of the raids, pending review of materials seized.

In the United States, 56 search warrants were served and approximately 130 computers, each holding an average of a terabyte of data, were seized.

The DrinkOrDie site, where software could be downloaded for free, was also shut down that day.

The raid at MIT was in the economics department; the University of Oregon raid at an off-campus location; the Duke raid in the campus dormitory of a male undergraduate. The universities themselves were not considered targets of the criminal investigation.

Related law enforcement actions include: Operation Fastlink, Operation Gridlock, and Operation D-Elite, Operation Site Down.

Contents

[edit] Individuals raided

[edit] Individuals charged/convicted/sentenced

John Riffe age 32, of Port St. John, Florida, pled guilty on May 9, 2002 to one felony count charging criminal copyright infringement. Riffe, used the screen name pseudonyms "blue" and "blueadept", and was a member of the warez groups ShadowRealm (SRM) and EXODUS. John Riffe is now out of jail.

[edit] Bust locations

Countries United States cities

[edit] Quotations

"This investigation underscores the severity and scope of a multibillion-dollar software swindle over the Internet, as well as the vulnerabilities of this technology to outside attack."
— Robert C. Bonner, commissioner of the Customs Service
"Our targets are not your stereotypical teenage hacker."
— Customs assistant commissioner John Varrone
"This is not a sport. This is a serious crime. These people should do some hard time."
— Commerce undersecretary Phil Bond
"Software piracy undermines the stability of the burgeoning e-commerce industry and it is a direct threat to innovative companies that help strengthen the U.S. economy."
— Deputy U.S. Treasury Secretary Kenneth Dam

[edit] External links

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