Round Up The Usual Suspects

SyCo, which is professional talent judge Simon Cowell’s label within the Sony Music universe, was eyeing the track to be the first single from Lewis’ next album, according to England’s Sun newspaper.

Although the label hasn’t actually said its computers were hacked, the Sun blames the leak on a “whole underworld of techie criminals who hack into emails and servers to get hold of the sought-after new tracks.”

The newspaper also says grabbing unreleased tracks and posting the songs on the Internet is kind of a status thing for the alleged hackers, claiming the music thieves tag purloined songs with unique codes enabling them to boast that it’s their leaks that end up on fans’ computers and iPods.

“Syco are working alongside the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, the British Phonographic Industry, the police and investigators in this and they are making fast progress,” a Syco spokesman said. “We will certainly look to bring charges against those who are responsible. We cannot give any more details at this stage for operational reasons.”

Lewis was a 2006 winner on Cowell’s “X Factor” and her first album – Spirit – was a top seller. Her next album is scheduled for a November release, according to Reuters.

Click here to read the complete Sun article.

Click here to read Reuters’ report.