Security News > 2021 > March > Swiss Police Raid Over Hack on U.S. Security-Camera Company
Swiss authorities on Monday confirmed a police raid at the home of a Swiss software engineer who took credit for helping to break into a U.S. security-camera company's online networks, part of what the activist hacker cited as an effort to raise awareness about the dangers of mass surveillance.
The Federal Office of Justice said regional police in central Lucerne, acting on a legal assistance request from U.S. authorities, on Friday carried out a house search involving hacker Tillie Kottmann.
The hacker said online that electronics devices were seized during the raid.
Kottmann, who uses they/them pronouns, said on the social media site Mastodon last week that the raid wasn't specifically about the Verkada hack but was tied to an earlier FBI investigation.
Kottmann has previously attracted attention for leaking hacked material to expose security flaws, including from U.S. chipmaker Intel last year.
It's common for professional cybersecurity researchers to probe online systems for security flaws, though "Hacktivists" often take that a step further by publicly exposing security risks or leaked materials to effect social change.