Major League Baseball announced on Tuesday that the federal government is investigating the St. Louis Cardinals after the Houston Astros’ internal database – which stores information about player personnel and evaluations – was hacked. If St. Louis is found to be the perpetrator, it will be the first time in history that a professional sports team has been caught hacking into one of its rival’s networks.
Cardinals chairman and CEO Bill Dewitt Jr. issued a statement on Wednesday stating: “These are serious allegations that don’t reflect who we are as an organization. We are committed to getting to the bottom of this matter as soon as possible, and if anyone within our organization is determined to be involved in anything inappropriate, they will be held accountable.”
If the FBI is able to determine who is responsible for the breaches, those individuals may face fines, jail time, or both. The FBI also released a statement: “The FBI aggressively investigates all potential threats to public and private sector systems. Once our investigations are complete, we pursue all appropriate avenues to hold accountable those who pose a threat in cyberspace.”