● Covered by 1 source · 1 reportMedium impact1 negative
Former Old School RuneScape Developer Sentenced for $400,000 Virtual Gold Theft
Key points
- Andrew Lakeman, known as "Mod Jed," stole virtual gold from OSRS players.
- The stolen in-game items were sold on the black market for over $400,000.
- Jagex used hidden firewall changes to trace the thefts back to Lakeman.
- Lakeman received a three-year suspended prison sentence and community service.
Developer Sentenced for Virtual Theft
Andrew Lakeman, a former developer for Old School RuneScape (OSRS) at Jagex, received a three-year prison sentence, suspended for two years, after being found guilty of stealing virtual gold. Lakeman, known as "Mod Jed" within the community, worked on the game starting in 2015. The Cambridge Crown Court also imposed a 150-hour unpaid work sentence and 25 days of rehabilitation.
Theft and Investigation
By 2018, Jagex observed a pattern of suspicious account recoveries followed by the disappearance of valuable in-game items and gold. Initially suspecting a glitch, a deeper investigation revealed an inside job. The stolen virtual gold and items were subsequently sold on the black market, generating over $400,000. Lakeman was found to possess $493,000 in cash across various bank accounts, which he claimed were proceeds from cryptocurrency sales.
Jagex's Response and Discovery
To identify the culprit, Jagex altered its account recovery procedures and modified its firewall without informing employees. This allowed the IT team to trace the illegal activities back to Lakeman. Despite his denial and claims of being hacked, Jagex fired him and reported the incident to the police. Lakeman was arrested in July 2019, with his sentencing occurring on September 3.
Impact on Virtual Economies
The OSRS in-game economy operates similarly to real-world markets, with players trading items or selling them on the Grand Exchange. The theft highlights the real monetary value of virtual items and the potential financial impact on players. While not as catastrophic as some external hacks, this internal breach by an employee represented a significant trust issue for Jagex, a company with over 100,000 active players.
✨ This summary was generated by AI from the outlets' reporting listed below. It is not independently verified and may contain errors — check the original sources. How BrevFeed works →
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Reporting from
A former Jagex employee, Andrew Lakeman, was sentenced to a three-year prison term, suspended for two years, for stealing over $400,000 worth of virtual gold from Old School RuneScape players and selling it on the black market. Jagex discovered the internal theft by modifying its firewall to track the illicit activity, leading to Lakeman's arrest and conviction.