In 2002, the Department of Justice indicted (in absentia) a resident of the UK, Gary McKinnon, of hacking into DOD and NASA computers and causing almost a million dollars worth of damages. Yesterday, they got around to trying to extradite him for trial.
McKinnon, a self described UFO fan, was apparently searching for files labeled “Area 51″ or other evidence that the US is concealing all it knows about extraterrestrial life. McKinnon says that any damage was accidental, when he tried to cover his tracks by erasing data. He must have been disappointed, as he found nothing about UFOs.
His biggest crime appears to be that he kept 2000 DOD and NASA computers from being able to access the internet for three days in the Spring of 2002 (although many were still able to send and receive email). As with most computer crimes, no one noticed any visible tremors of panic in the DC area.
McKinnon did not, DOD says, gain access to any classified information. He got access to unclassified systems as a result of sloppy security practices (not changing the default password), but he now says that he was closed out by DOD administrators soon after getting in.
70 years in jail (which is what the US is threatening him with) seems excessive. That an unemployed Brit with a UFO mania was able to tromp around unclassified DOD computers is embarrassing, and he deserves a stiff fine, some community service, and maybe a little jail time.
The real issue is who else is tromping around, perhaps a bit more skillfully, not leaving tracks, and not confining themselves to searching for UFO data. McKinnon himself said “I was always very frightened when I realized there were always other people from all over the world on there [the DOD networks].“
Even if McKinnon was unable to access classified data, people at DOJ say (off the record) that he was able to look at weapons R&D material that shouldn’t be public. The internet has been a tremendous boon for espionage, and if McKinnon found a way to get in, we have to assume that other, more professional types, did so as well.
Hack Attack
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http://www.guardian.co.uk/weekend/story/0,3605,1523143,00.html
Gary did in fact find something about UFO’s. The above link is an interview with a UK paper, in which he states that he came across a “non-terrestrial officer” list as well as some unknown US Navy Ship names. Gotta love Wargames…
When it comes to computer crimes people seem to see the victomless aspect of them. No one was hurt so everything should be OK. But if this guy knocked down a building causing a million dollars worth of damage people would be out for blood. Why is it that the time and money it takes to fix the mess guys like him make are less important than say robbing a bank of a million dollars. The cost of dealing with criminals like this is far more costly to the public and private sector than bankrobbers, murderers, or almost any other crime. They should pay based on how much money it cost sociaty. Personally I like the idea of these guys having to pay back the costs of the damage they have done with community service or cash.
He also admits to being quite stoned at the time he discovered these so-called non-terrestrial officers, and apparently didn’t keep any copies of this. In the absence of evidence, I view this claim with extreme skepticism.
IO – I agree, he probably left starwars on in the background and fell asleep. I found his candour about the number and frequency of hacks quite surprising though.
Common sense tells the average person not to try something like this. He must have known in the back of his stoned mind that if he got caught there would be serious reprecussions. Unless he has real evidence to back up his claims, he has no bargaining chip. I don’t think he should go to prison for 70 years but I do agree with the community service and fines. If anything, maybe this has highlighted the need for better systems security across the US Government. And it is probable that more skilled hackers have gone deeper and compromised US security for nefarious reasons.
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something everybody seems to forget about Gary Mckinnon is that his only crime was accessing computers to which he was not authorised to access. The military are covering their ass when they say he only accessed unclassified material. So therefore by their own admission he had simply hacked computers. He had not been involved in espionage but in simply a denial of service attack. The fact the military is involved is a farce. If their computers are so insecure why not just call the trial off and save the USA the embarrassment of admitting its best technicians are a joke