Eric Council Jr has been sentenced to 14 months in prison for hacking the SEC's X account in January. The court has also ordered him to forfeit $50,000 and serve three years of supervised release. Council was arrested in October 2024 and agreed to a plea deal in February by pleading guilty to charges related to identity theft conspiracy.

The incident occurred amidst rumors of a Bitcoin ETF approval at the beginning of 2024. Council's hack of the SEC's X account falsely claiming the approval caused a surge in Bitcoin prices and led to a manhunt for him. The story came to an end today with Council's sentencing.

The US Attorney's office disclosed that Council used a SIM Swap to compromise a phone with access to the X account. He continued similar fraudulent activities until his arrest in October 2024 following FBI intervention.

Government authorities suspect Council had co-conspirators in the SEC hack, but no one else has been identified or charged so far. The government had offered Council a plea deal that involved naming these associates; however, no significant progress has been reported in the broader investigation. The sentence also includes restrictions after Council's release aimed at preventing further criminal activities.