41 Months In Prison For Man Who Leaked AT&T iPad Email Addresses 459
In 2010, querying a public AT&T database yielded over 114,000 email address for iPad owners who were subscribed to the carrier. One of the people who found these emails, Andrew 'weev' Auernheimer, sent them to a news site to publicize AT&T's security flaw. He later ended up in court for his actions. Auernheimer was found guilty, and today he was sentenced to 41 months in prison. 'Following his release from prison, Auernheimer will be subject to three years of supervised release. Auernheimer and co-defendant Daniel Spitler were also ordered to pay $73,000 in restitution to AT&T. (Spitler pled guilty in 2011.) The pre-sentencing report prepared by prosecutors recommended four years in federal prison for Auernheimer.' A journalist watching the sentencing said, 'I felt like I was watching a witch trial as prosecutors admitted they didn't understand computers.'
Re:Sentencing reveals country's values (Score:5, Informative)
The Steubenville convictees are legally juveniles. Society has decided that we don't throw the book at them. Had they been adults, they would not be getting sent to a juvenile facility, and they would not be getting out in so short a time. It's hardly an apt comparison.
Re:Good (Score:5, Informative)
Isn't a key element of the legal case that he also retransmitted the private information? He did not merely receive it.
From the court filing [archive.org], it appears both charges are predicated on the notion that sending GET requests to an unprotected, publicly-accessible web server constitute unauthorized access under Title 18, Section 1030(a)(2)(C) [cornell.edu].
Re:Good (Score:5, Informative)
Two high school kids just got 1 year each for raping a drunk 16 year old at a party (where people actually filmed and took pictures of it happening).. http://www.sheboyganpress.com/viewart/20130318/SHE0101/130317029/Two-Ohio-high-school-football-players-convicted-raping-girl-16 [sheboyganpress.com]
and this guy gets more than 3 times that for mentioning that a web site will give out people's private email address after AT&T did nothing about it?
Re:Good (Score:2, Informative)
Because they were minors one of them got 1 year and up to age 21 and the other one got 2 years with the possibility of serving til they age of 21. They also both have to register as sex offenders for the rest of their lives which in some states means they cant live within so many feet of a school or church, can never have a job where they work with kids, can never own a firearm, can't be a cop etc.
Not that they don't deserve it, they do, but the idea that they are getting off scot-free is not correct.