“Hacking” is the act of breaking into someone’s computer system without permission. There are state and federal laws against hacking with penalties that include probation, jail or prison time.
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Once caught, the authorities usually take immediate action against the student. Even if criminal charges are not filed, the school may suspend or expel the hacker. Consider the following hacking incidents:
- 17-year-old Justin Boucher of Wisconsin wrote an article for his school newspaper titled “So you want to be a hacker.” He included instructions on how to break into the school’s computer. He was expelled for one year.
- In June, 2009, 19-year-old Matthew Weigman of Boston was sentenced to 11 years in prison for using computers and the telephone to harass victims – making fake 911 calls to get SWAT teams to respond to unsuspecting victims’ homes.
- In 2008, 19-year-old Josh Holly hacked into Miley Cyrus’ s email account and stole photos of her; 20-year-old David Kernell hacked into Vice-Presidential candidate Sarah Palin’s email account looking for something incriminating to derail her campaign. On April 30, 2010 he was found guilty by a jury of obstruction of justice and unauthorized access to a computer. He faces 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine when sentenced.
- In 2001, a 15-year-old Canadian boy plead guilty to computer mischief and unauthorized access and was sentenced to eight months in juvenile detention and probation.
- An 11-year-old Florida boy broke into his teacher’s computer and changed his grades. He was arrested, released to his father and completed a diversion program.
On the other hand, some teens with computer skills have been beneficial to schools and the government. Reid Ellison of California was given permission to hack into his school’s computer system as his class project. He did it so quickly that he assisted in securing the system.
For more about the government’s search for “white-hat” hackers see: http://askthejudge.info/wanted-hackers-to-work-for-federal-government/345/
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