A hacker who stole unreleased music from artists including Coldplay, Upsahl, and Melanie Martinez has been sentenced after a lengthy investigation by the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU) at City of London Police.
Skylar Taylor Dalziel, 22, of Winchester Gardens, Luton, illegally accessed multiple cloud storage accounts linked to the artists and sold the stolen tracks online. The court heard that Dalziel made approximately £42,000 from the illicit sales.
Sentencing and Charges
Dalziel pleaded guilty to nine copyright offences and four computer misuse offences at Luton Crown Court on 4 October 2024. Today, 3 January 2025, she was sentenced to:
- 21 months imprisonment (suspended for 24 months)
- 180 hours of unpaid work
PIPCU’s Response
Detective Constable Daryl Fryatt, from PIPCU, condemned Dalziel’s actions:
“Stealing copyrighted material for financial gain is illegal. It jeopardizes the work of artists and the livelihoods of the people who create and release their music. This type of criminal activity contributes to over 80,000 job losses each year.”
“Today’s sentencing sends a clear message that cybercriminals will be found and held accountable. We believe Dalziel was working with suspects overseas and are now working to identify them.”
How the Hack Was Uncovered
The case came to light in June 2021, when Sony Music Entertainment reported to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) that Upsahl’s cloud account had been compromised. 40 unreleased tracks were stolen and illegally sold online.
