18-year-old defendant in Japan's first crypto theft

In Japan's first case against a hacker over cryptocurrency theft, an 18-year-old boy was referred to prosecutors for allegedly stealing about $134,300 worth of cryptocurrency, The Japan Times reported.

For stealing the money, the boy allegedly hacked Monappy, a website where users can keep the cryptocurrency monacoin, last year.

Hailing from the city of Utsunomiya in the Tochigi prefecture, the boy made use of a software called Tor that makes it hard to identify the person accessing the system.

But an analysis of communication records left on the website's server led the police to find the person behind the hacking, the report said.

The boy has admitted to the allegations, according to the police.

"I felt like I'd found a trick no one knows and did it as if I were playing a video game," the boy, whose name was withheld because he is a minor, was quoting as saying.

The boy used the ill gotten money to buy items such as a smartphone, the police said.

--IANS

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