Skylar Dalziel, a 22-year-old resident of Luton, UK, has pleaded guilty to the large-scale theft of unreleased music. The perpetrator gained unauthorized access to the cloud storage accounts of prominent artists, including the band Coldplay, Canadian singer Shawn Mendes, and American performer Bebe Rexha.
The criminal scheme was uncovered in June 2021 when Sony Music Entertainment detected unauthorized access to the cloud storage of singer Upsahl. The company promptly reported the incident to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI). Investigations revealed that 40 unreleased tracks had been stolen from the storage.
London police determined that Dalziel sold the stolen tracks on the dark web. A joint investigation by the IFPI and the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) identified the suspect’s account on an online forum where stolen music was traded.
When Dalziel was apprehended on January 9, 2023, authorities seized three hard drives containing 291,941 music tracks. Investigators also uncovered a spreadsheet documenting the sales of stolen compositions. Analysis of PayPal and bank accounts showed that Dalziel had earned £42,049 from illicit activities between April 2021 and January 2023.
The Luton court found Dalziel guilty on 11 counts of copyright infringement, one count of transferring criminal proceeds, and three counts of acquiring and using criminal property. She was sentenced to a 21-month suspended prison term, a 24-month probationary period, and 180 hours of community service.
A portion of the illicitly obtained funds had been transferred to bank accounts in the United States. London police are currently collaborating with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to identify the owners of these accounts.
Detective Constable Daryl Fryatt, from the Intellectual Property Crime Unit, emphasized that stealing music for personal gain constitutes a crime that undermines the livelihoods of artists and all those involved in the creation and production of music.
