Pirates advertise their wares a little bit too publicly
And Sony uses private investigators to track them down
Let this story be a lesson to anyone out thinking about advertising their pirated wares on the internet. It's best not to bill yourself as THE ONLY TRUE FIRST PSP MODDER ON CRAIGSLIST (particularly if you're using eBay of course) and then flog people DVDs packed with pirated games such as Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories unless you're looking for early retirement.
It's been reported (over at Gamepolitics) that two separate PSP modders have had suits filed against them by Sony in the District Court of California after they were caught selling modified PSP consoles and DVDs loaded with pirated games.
Sony used private investigators to track the pair down. Not difficult because, yes, they allowed their buyers to turn up at their houses to pick up the illegal goods.
Gabriel Garcia modded the private investigator's PSP for $80 and loaded it with 100 games, then sold him a further 11 DVD-Rs containing even more games. His Craigslist ad called it his 'Super Spring Deal' and - just to wind up Sony a bit more - he even used the official PlayStation logo in his ad.
The second man, Timothy Joey Zoucha Jr, was caught in a similar fashion modifying PSPs at the (cheaper) price of $28 then supplying $100 pirated games for $20.
A court date for the pair of them is scheduled for later this month.
Idiots.
