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UK man to spend year in the clink for Facebook account hack

21-year-old admitted breaking into US victim's profile

A British man has been jailed for a year after hacking into the Facebook account of a US citizen.

Gareth Crosskey, 21, of Avon Close, Lancing, in West Sussex, hacked into his unnamed victim's profile on 12 January 2011, gaining access to an e-mail account in the process. The breach was reported to the FBI, which traced the source of the hack back to the UK before turning the investigation over to Blighty's plod.

Scotland Yard's Police Central e-Crime Unit tracked down Crosskey as a suspect, leading to his arrest last July and subsequent prosecution. Faced with a mass of computer forensic evidence against him, Crosskey pleaded guilty to two hacking offences contrary to Britain's Computer Misuse Act. He was sentenced to 12 months of imprisonment at a hearing at London's Southwark Crown Court on Wednesday.

The PCeU issued a statement that said the result of the case "should act as a deterrent to any individuals thinking of participating in this type of criminal activity". ®

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