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FBI probes St. Louis Cardinals over Astros cyberattack – Report

Agence France-Presse

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FBI probes St. Louis Cardinals over Astros cyberattack – Report
If confirmed, the case would be the first corporate espionage hacking case involving a professional sports team.

NEW YORK, USA – Major League Baseball giants the St. Louis Cardinals are being investigated by US authorities over allegations officials hacked into the computer network of a rival team to steal information about player personnel, the New York Times reported Tuesday.

The Cardinals – one of the most successful franchises in baseball over the past decade with World Series triumphs in 2006 and 2011 – were being probed over an alleged hack against the Houston Astros, the Times reported, citing law enforcement officials.

The report said investigators from the FBI and Justice Department had uncovered evidence that Cardinals employees successfully penetrated an internal Astros database which included information about trades, statistics and scouting reports.

The Times reported that FBI investigators in Houston were leading the inquiry and that subpoenas had already been served on the Cardinals and Major League Baseball for electronic correspondence.

It was not clear which Cardinals employees were being targeted in the probe, the report added.

The Times cited law enforcement officials as saying the hack was carried out by front-office employees from the Cardinals bearing a grudge against Jeff Luhnow, the Astros general manager, who worked as an executive with the St Louis team until his departure in 2011.

If confirmed, the case would be the first corporate espionage hacking case involving a professional sports team.

A series of high-profile companies and government agencies have been targeted by overseas hackers in recent years, but often the intent is to steal information to be used for fraud or military and trade secrets.

Major League Baseball said in a statement it was cooperating with the investigation.

“Major League Baseball has been aware of and has fully cooperated with the federal investigation into the illegal breach of the Astros’ baseball operations database,” a statement said.

“Once the investigative process has been completed by federal law enforcement officials, we will evaluate the next steps and will make decisions promptly.”

The Times report said no Cardinals officials had been placed on leave, suspended or fired.

If proven, the allegations will be a damaging blow to the reputation from the Cardinals, one of the most famous names in baseball whose 11 World Series crowns are second only to the New York Yankees. – Rappler.com

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