Two men have appeared in court accused of hacking into Michael Jackson's back catalogue, according to the Irish Independent.

James Marks, 26, and James McCormick, 25, are said to have appeared in Leicester crown court last Friday (March 2) over the alleged stealing of tracks belonging to Sony Music. They deny the charges.

The hacking had been mooted in the press over the past few days, but a statement from Sony confirmed that the hacking incident did occur and that it took place in May 2011. The statement said:

"We confirmed the breach last May and immediately took steps to secure the site and notify authorities. As a result, the two suspects were arrested. There was no consumer data involved in the incident."

Michael Jackson's back catalogue meanwhile has been the subject of question recently, with sister La Toya Jackson suggesting that some of the vocals which appeared on his posthumous album 'Michael' wasn't that of the late singer.