Hacker with a special interest in breaching sports institutions ends behind bars

French police have arrested a suspected hacker linked to a series of data breaches affecting organizations in the country.

Citing authorities, Le Parisien reported that the suspect, a 20-year-old man using the alias ‘HexDex,’ was taken into custody on April 22, 2026, in the Vendée region, western France.

The suspect admitted to using the alias ‘HexDex,’ which he used to claim the leaks online and repost the data on forums such as BreachForum and Darkforum, platforms known for trading stolen data. His Darkforum account and computer equipment were seized.

Authorities said the case dates back to December 19, 2025 , when the cybercrime unit of the Paris prosecutor’s office received around 100 reports related to data exfiltration incidents.

Sports federations appear to have been of special interest, with breaches affecting organizations in sailing, athletics, motorsport, gymnastics, skiing, rugby league, aikido, mountaineering and climbing, American football, and canoeing, among others.

The suspect has also been linked to data leaks involving hotel groups, cultural institutions, and government systems, including Logis Hôtels and Brit Hotel, the Philharmonie de Paris, the Moselle prefecture, and e-campus, an online training platform used by the national police.

Help Net Security wrote about a cyberattack on France Titres that was detected on April 15, but officials are not linking it to the suspect at this stage.