Catapult Sports (cfb practice software being restricted by Michigan and bama) under NCAA investigation
Per Catapult:
“We are aware of the ongoing investigation of the alleged unauthorized access to NCAA football video footage. We have conducted an internal investigation and have not found any security breach in our systems. We have shared this with local authorities that are conducting an investigation. We will continue to support the ongoing investigation with the NCAA and local authorities. At Catapult, we hold ourselves to the highest of standards and safeguarding customer information is of utmost importance to us.”
this was the software the “stalbombs” Twitter handle was claiming osu exploited to spy on Penn state, Maryland and others
December 29th, 2023 at 4:39 PM ^
Why are WE getting blamed for this??
December 29th, 2023 at 5:07 PM ^
Clicks.
December 29th, 2023 at 5:28 PM ^
Yeah, it's not us. Shall we take bets on who that one other school is?
December 29th, 2023 at 5:31 PM ^
It might not be OSU.
But it would be hilarious if it were.
December 29th, 2023 at 11:12 PM ^
Maybe this why they can’t beat Missouri and can’t score.
December 29th, 2023 at 5:34 PM ^
Unfortunately that's not apparent from the tweet, since an investigation can involve a school without it being "centered on" that school. Obviously I think Wetzel means we're not involved, but this is irresponsible framing intended to get ahead of the mindless idiots who will assume Michigan is behind every college football scandal for the next decade.
December 29th, 2023 at 9:16 PM ^
Wetzel clarified in a follow up tweet (and obliterated some OSU troll in the process lol). We're not at all implicated in this.
December 29th, 2023 at 5:36 PM ^
If it were Michigan, who has money that Wetzel would name us? Yet here he is, not naming someone else...
December 29th, 2023 at 5:42 PM ^
I thought Wetzel was one of the much fairer national media voices during all this nonsense.
December 29th, 2023 at 6:36 PM ^
Wetzel generally is fair. I’m waiting for the rest of the national media to rouse itself from its self satisfied slumber and actually report on this. But I’m sure I’m waiting in vain. Assholes.
December 30th, 2023 at 7:28 AM ^
By the time we kickoff Thamel will have pinned this on us and our expanded vast network. When Stallions was in Minters ear yelling pass because OSU had an empty backfield, we were the devil. Hack practice footage and Michigans not being investigated,,,,,meh!
December 29th, 2023 at 5:50 PM ^
I just had a seizure reading that last paragraph by wetzel. Wtf does that even mean…
December 29th, 2023 at 5:53 PM ^
Seems straightforward to me. We're not the focus of the investigation, but another school is, and possibly others.
December 29th, 2023 at 6:06 PM ^
It says “is not centered on Michigan” which can mean anything from Michigan not being involved to Michigan not being the center of it bc other schools are also involved. Idk
December 29th, 2023 at 6:44 PM ^
He probably can't definitively say which schools are not under suspicion. Just which ones are.
December 29th, 2023 at 6:17 PM ^
I'd guess maybe the other skool that has 2 former football coaches working for Catapult?
December 29th, 2023 at 9:37 PM ^
I don't know why this even needs to be said: a lot of schools have former staff working at Catapult. Where do you think they find people with experience processing football video?
Of course you're right, that's who it is. But the evidence isn't that they have former staff there.
December 29th, 2023 at 7:47 PM ^
Michigan already publicly stated that it is NOT the school being investigated and that it is probably one of the schools targeted by the breach (if there was a breach).
This is clearly related to the rumor started that Ohio had access to film because of their relationship to two employees. This rumor is most likely BS as it seemed to be based on completely circumstantial past employee relationships. More than happy to be wrong, but I think nothing will be found.
December 29th, 2023 at 9:03 PM ^
Depends on how sophisticated the NCAA’s computer forensics is and then how good at OPSEC ‘they’ were at covering their tracks. I’m betting it wasn’t a sophisticated hacking scheme other than: hey send me their practice footage hurrr hurr. Yea just my gmail man. Smoked. Even if you’re using VPN and doubt they were. Might even have it over the University systems and we’re talking potential federal crimes. Doubt these guys were slick if they did do it.
December 29th, 2023 at 9:15 PM ^
What I am suggesting is not that they can’t catch them. I am saying that the rumor is so baseless (There are probably employees from many CFB teams that work there) that nothing happened. No employee is going to risk their job to help Ohio win a game.
Edit: There is a new story of Ohio logging into Maryland’s film and sharing it with SMU. SMU notified Maryland. Maryland confronted Day. This changes things. The questions here will be how did Ohio get the logins, is the way they did it illegal (could be a cyber crime), and was there a NCAA rule broken. If the NCAA does not have a rule violation for a team committing a crime then that would be stupid. The BigTen can certainly use their broad competitive rule.
December 29th, 2023 at 9:35 PM ^
No employee is going to risk their job to help Ohio win a game
Really? You clearly haven't heard of Connor Stalions?
December 30th, 2023 at 6:07 PM ^
CS absolutely was not going to do something that would risk his future as a coach at Michigan. That was his life’s goal. He probably stepped over a line that wasn’t completely clear to him especially since signs apparently are shared or stolen all the time.
But sharing competitive information from one client for another is without question a fireable offense and more.
December 29th, 2023 at 10:02 PM ^
Lots of people--not everyone, but lots of people--will risk their job for a reason like this. The thing to keep in mind, though, is that they don't realize they're risking their job until after they've done it. They think they can get away with it until they get caught.
I know more than one person who got fired for doing something stupid and shady and obvious with either items their company purchased or their customer purchased.
I'd add that another potential motivation for risking their job is if gambling is involved (i.e., they need money to support their habit, they think this will help them get a big payday, they promised shady underworld figure, etc.).
Remember Art Schlichter? If not, he was a former Ohio State quarterback and first round draft choice who after his NFL career flamed out went to jail for various fraudulent shit he did to support his gambling habit. Just got out a couple years ago, I believe.
December 30th, 2023 at 6:55 PM ^
They did it for money and not just for a rivalry game. That’s a big difference. Now you suggest that the two can be connected via gambling. That’s certainly a possibility but still seems unlikely in this case.
December 30th, 2023 at 7:31 AM ^
Did you not watch the 2016 game?
December 30th, 2023 at 7:00 PM ^
If you mean the refs, they have a plausible deniability defense if they were to actually do something wrong.
The Catapult employees situation should be provable one way or the other.
December 29th, 2023 at 9:43 PM ^
This rumor is most likely BS as it seemed to be based on completely circumstantial past employee relationships.
I'm fairly certain that what it was based on was suspicion--who knows how well-founded--on the part of other Catapult employees. The "circumstantial past employee relationships" weren't in the stalbombs post because they were evidence, they were there to point investigators in the right direction.
December 30th, 2023 at 6:12 PM ^
All I have seen alleged so far is that there are the common employees between Ohio and Catapult. I haven’t see one other piece of evidence. I would be happy to learn that there was other evidence before they started the investigation. But without that, there could be blowback if nothing is found.
Edit: There is a new story of Ohio logging into Maryland’s film and sharing it with SMU. SMU notified Maryland. Maryland confronted Day. This changes things. The questions here will be how did Ohio get the logins, is the way they did it illegal (could be a cyber crime), and was there a NCAA rule broken. If the NCAA does not have a rule violation for a team committing a crime then that would be stupid. The BigTen can certainly use their broad competitive rule.
December 29th, 2023 at 10:02 PM ^
A few days ago there were stories out after Saban was asked about the sign stealing and the included info was about Bama players not allowed to take their iPads with them or access video online. It was alluded that this was a precaution due to Michigan stealing signs. Will the media come out and correct it and say its not about Michigan but rather Catapult? Heavens no they won't. They have their narrative and they're riding that bus until its a piece of scrap metal.
December 29th, 2023 at 4:40 PM ^
Cool that Catapult is under investigation...but what about OSU for exploiting it?
Edit: Okay, read it now. So, there is an NCAA investigation that involves Catapult. No mention of who is actually being investigated (UM or someone else). NCAA won't comment, lol.
December 29th, 2023 at 4:43 PM ^
Your football season has to matter for you to get in trouble. OSU's season does not meet this threshold.
December 30th, 2023 at 7:33 AM ^
After last night, OSU isn’t the golden calf anymore. There’s no reason to run cover for a team of 5 stars who are poorly developed and coached.
December 29th, 2023 at 6:11 PM ^
I agree.
December 29th, 2023 at 11:10 PM ^
Finally, someone on my wavelength!
December 29th, 2023 at 8:13 PM ^
Succinct.
December 29th, 2023 at 10:04 PM ^
The only time the NCAA will say who or what school is being investigated is if its anything to do with Michigan. And then they will send out points of interest for the journalists to use in their so-called stories which are literally hit pieces.
December 30th, 2023 at 1:06 AM ^
Yes apparently the NCAA only disregards its own protocols and comments publicly on an ongoing investigation if it involves Michigan.
December 29th, 2023 at 4:43 PM ^
On re-reading this, “we hold ourselves to the highest standards” sounds like wagon-circling.
Yet again, go Mizzou!
December 29th, 2023 at 4:43 PM ^
We will continue to support the ongoing investigation with the NCAA and local authorities.
NCAA should have basically zero investigative authority. But if law enforcement gets involved and there is evidence of a breach, things could get really interesting.
December 29th, 2023 at 5:25 PM ^
Yeah. Paying some kid to go to Columbus to sit in the stands and record the game with his iPhone may be against the NCAA rules (or it may not be), and apparently a coach can get fired for doing this.
Hacking into a computer system to get files is a felony. And as a St. Louis Cardinals fan, I will tell you the feds do prosecute these crimes. People really have gone to prison for this behavior.
These two actions are not remotely in the same ballpark.
December 29th, 2023 at 5:51 PM ^
Well sure. One is the greatest scandal in the history of the B1G, miles worse than Sandusky. The other is just doing what it takes to win — assuming Michigan isn’t involved, of course. Then it would be serious.
December 29th, 2023 at 6:19 PM ^
Is it really hacking if 2 former coaches of a school work for Catapult and willingly give practice footage to said school?
December 29th, 2023 at 6:36 PM ^
If granting that access to footage violated any terms of use agreement or contractual agreement, yes, potentially.
Hacking doesn’t have to be technically sophisticated. It usually isn’t
December 29th, 2023 at 6:36 PM ^
Probably not. But those two are hacks?
December 29th, 2023 at 4:45 PM ^
What I find conspicuous is the absence of denial of the actual rumored allegation - insiders providing access to other teams. That would not in my opinion constitute a “data breach.” They MUST have log notes of who accesses what tapes and where. Why wasn’t that addressed?
December 29th, 2023 at 4:55 PM ^
Catapult actually let slip something that I think is new. There are investigations into unauthorized access of their data. I don't think we knew that.
It's being investigated by "local authorities" (Boston PD?) and the NCAA, and they are choosing to cooperate with the NCAA. Surely they have no requirement to do so.
But what this investigation is, no clue, beyond the one rumor that Day's cronies gave him the info which, like you say, isn't exactly a "data breach."
December 29th, 2023 at 4:58 PM ^
It would be unauthorized access or a breach, whether insider or external party.
December 29th, 2023 at 5:04 PM ^
Would access to something like this fall under "computer access crimes"? Hopefully not something that Weiss was involved in
December 29th, 2023 at 5:31 PM ^
I have worked in IT Security for a long time. If there is confidential data from multiple teams on the same server I would think it requires MTF to sign on, not just a simple password. If not, I bet they do now...