US prosecutors have said "winter has come" for an Iranian man charged with hacking HBO, stealing episodes and demanding a ransom.

According to federal authorities, Behzad Mesri is a former Iranian military contractor and a member of the Turk Black Hat Security hacking team.

The indictment accuses Mr Mesri of computer fraud, wire fraud, extortion and identity theft, after unaired episodes of Game Of Thrones, Curb Your Enthusiasm and Ballers were leaked online.

Acting US attorney Joon Kim told a news conference in Manhattan on Tuesday that HBO had "become a victim of a malicious cyberattack" and, although Mr Mesri was in Iran and could not be arrested, he would face consequences.

"In Game of Thrones, 'winter is coming' is the motto of the House of Stark," Mr Kim said.


"Today, winter has come for Behzad Mesri."

Image: Behzad Mesri is shown in this undated photo provided by the FBI in New York

"For the rest of his life - and he's a relatively young man in his late 20s - he will never be able to travel outside Iran,'' he added.

"The memory of American law enforcement is very long."

Mr Kim confirmed the 29-year-old Iranian national had been added to the FBI's most wanted list.

He is accused of conducting "hundreds of website defacements using the online hacker pseudonym 'Skote Vahshat' against websites in the United States and elsewhere around the world".

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Image: Curb Your Enthusiasm was another show targeted by the alleged hacker

Court papers accuse Mr Mesri of threatening HBO and demanding to be paid "a 'non-negotiable' ransom" - approximately $6m (£4.5m) worth of Bitcoin.

After 1.5 terabytes of data were stolen from HBO servers last summer, an email was sent to all HBO employees reading: "Hi to All losers" Yes it's true! HBO is hacked! Beware of Heart Attacks!!!".

Mr Kim declined to say if HBO had offered or paid any ransom.

The US Attorney also denied that the charges against Mr Mesri were part of a coordinated Justice Department effort to increase pressure on lawmakers to stiffen sanctions against Iran.