A TEENAGE computer hacker working from his Shetland bedroom broke into News International websites and posted a story claiming Rupert Murdoch was dead, it was alleged yesterday.

Jake Davis, 18, is facing a string of charges relating to hacking groups LulzSec and Anonymous, including hacking into Scotland Yard's Serious Organised Crime Agency (Soca) website.

The youngster is said to have carried out a number of computer attacks from his bedroom, including being part of the attacks on Sony Entertainment Systems.

When the computer console giant's San Diego offices were targeted earlier this year, personal details of users, including credit card details were taken.

Davis is accused of conspiring to carry out distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks, which flood websites with traffic to make them crash.

Scotland Yard's Soca website was shut down by such an attack in June. Davis also allegedly hacked into East London NHS Trust's website.

Rav Chodha, prosecuting, said: "The organisations that were hacked were Sony, Soca, East London NHS Foundation Trust and News International."

Describing an attack on the News International title the Sun's site, he said: "He wrote the article about Rupert Murdoch being dead and that was posted into the Sun website."

Davis was arrested on 27 July in the Shetland Islands as part of an investigation into the global hacking groups LulzSec and Anonymous. The teenager, who is alleged to use the online nickname "Topiary", has been charged with five offences.

The five charges are gaining unauthorised access to a computer system, encouraging or assisting offences, two counts of conspiring to commit offences and conspiring to carry out a distributed denial of services attack.

LulzSec has previously claimed responsibility for attacks on Soca's website, the US Senate, the CIA and the Sun newspaper.

Rav Chodha told City of Westminster Magistrates' Court that News International titles the Sun and the Times' websites were subject to a malicious breach by and "unknown source".

Davis, who spoke only to confirm his name and date of birth, wore a blue denim shirt, jeans and a black T-shirt, and was holding a copy of the book Free Radicals as he sat in the dock.

District judge Howard Riddle bailed him under strict conditions, which include not accessing the internet or having any device capable of accessing the web, a curfew between 10pm and 7am and to sleep at an address in Spalding, Lincolnshire each night. Davis will next appear at Southwark Crown Court on 30 August.