A NERDY teenager was arrested yesterday on suspicion of masterminding a global computer hacking operation from his bedroom.
Oddball student Ryan Cleary, 19, was held by cops who swooped on his mum's home in Wickford, Essex.
He is thought to be a leader of LulzSec, a group claiming responsibility for hacking into Britain's Serious Organised Crime Agency and the US Senate.
Geeky Cleary is also suspected of being the brains behind hacking raids on computer game giants Sony and Nintendo - and America's CIA secret service.
He allegedly did it all behind the closed curtains of his bedroom at his mum's extended bungalow. And a computer expert said last night: "It's the true nature of the internet that Wickford could be the centre of a global hacking movement."
Reclusive Cleary was arrested by cops yesterday in a "pre-planned intelligence-led operation".
The swoop was part of a joint investigation by Scotland Yard and the FBI.
American authorities were kept informed. And Cleary - said to be "very bright" - could eventually face extradition to the US.
Detectives believe he is a "major player" with LulzSec, a hackers' group which claimed responsibility for the theft of 77million Sony PlayStation customers' names, addresses, bank details and passwords.
The organisation - said to have links with the notorious WikiLeaks whistleblowers - is a splinter group of Anonymous, which last year launched digital assaults on MasterCard and PayPal.
LulzSec is believed to have initially targeted only gaming firms and US broadcasters including PBS and Fox.
The group cracked a cult computer joke after invading PBS, writing "All your base are belong to LulzSec" across its website above the hackers' moustachioed toff logo.
But on Twitter, it recently declared its intention to break into government websites and leak confidential documents. And claims it has lifted the entire 2011 UK census database are being probed.
Cleary, a heavy metal fan who has been thrown out of two schools for disruptive behaviour, was arrested by officers from Scotland Yard's specialist e-crime unit.

They took him in after quizzing him for five hours at the 330,000 home he shares with mum Rita, 45.
Police sources said a "mind-boggling amount of information" had been seized from one of the nerdy lad's two computers.
They added the swoop was just the start of what could be a "long and complex" inquiry - and further arrests were possible.
Last night it emerged Cleary's identity may have been blown by rival hackers who published his name, address and mobile number on the web earlier this month.

Stunned Rita, a nurse at Southend Hospital, said her son "lives his life online".
She told how he has a history of mental illness and suffers from agoraphobia, a fear of open spaces, but is highly intelligent. Rita added that she thought he was playing computer games in his bedroom and cannot believe he was hacking into security agency websites.
The mum said cops had talked to Cleary in "computer speak" and she could not understand the discussion.
Journalist James Nixon, who interviewed Cleary last month for technology website Thinq, said: "He's in a bit of a bubble. He is very much aware of the power that he has in his hands but not necessarily the repercussions."

Cleary's half-brother Mitchell, 22, said: "Ryan is obsessed with computers. He's a bit of a geek. That's all he does - he's a recluse. He locks himself in his room every day, closes the curtains and spends hours at a time online.
"He isn't into football or sports. Computers are everything to him. I barely see him. My mum is finding this extremely hard."
Mitchell added: "Ryan used to be part of WikiLeaks. He has upset someone doing that and they made a Facebook page having a go at him."
Cleary, who has a company named Arcusvoice registered in his name, was being questioned at a central London police station last night under computer misuse and fraud laws.

His father Neil, 44, is separated from his mum. The dad is thought to teach music in Peterborough, Cambs, and once worked on hit West End musical Starlight Express.
Computer security experts said Cleary's arrest is a coup for police if he is the mastermind of LulzSec. Graham Cluley, of anti-virus firm Sophos, said: "The hacker has been bloodying the nose of computer crime authorities around the world.
"But we don't know if it is one person behind LulzSec or a group."

Rik Ferguson, a security adviser at software makers Trend Micro, said: "If you have the skills you can make a name for yourself in very much the wrong way.
"Hackers have been doing it to spark chaos and for their idea of fun. But then they demonstrated a willingness to release personal information and that put people at risk. So it was not all about fun."
No messages were posted on LulzSec's Twitter account for ten hours after Cleary's arrest. Then as worldwide speculation grew about him being a lone wolf, a user came online to taunt: "Seems the glorious leader of LulzSec got arrested, it's all over now... wait... we're all still here! Which poor b*****d did they take down?"
Later, addressing law enforcement "clowns," the group insisted Cleary was a scapegoat. They said he is NOT a member and they merely use his computer server to house a legitimate chatroom.
The case prompted comparisons with that of another Briton, 45-year-old Gary McKinnon. He is wanted in the US for allegedly hacking into Pentagon and Nasa computers while searching for evidence of aliens. He faces 60 years in jail if he is extradited and convicted.