Archive for the ‘Hacker’ Category
Gary McKinnon, a British computer expert, claims he’s just fascinated with UFOs. Using his home computer and a modem — how WarGames! — he infiltrated military networks and accessed thousands of computers trying to find evidence of alien contact. Now caught and having lost an appeal with the British courts, he’s awaiting extradition to the United States to stand trial, accused of the “biggest military hack of all time.” The full list of his computer-exploiting prowess:
Using his own computer at home in London, McKinnon hacked into 97 computers belonging to and used by the U.S. government between February 2001 and March 2002.
McKinnon is accused of causing the entire U.S. Army’s Military District of Washington network of more than 2,000 computers to be shut down for 24 hours.
Using a limited 56-kbps dialup modem and the hacking name “Solo” he found many U.S. security systems used an insecure Microsoft Windows program with no password protection.
He then bought off-the-shelf software and scanned military networks, saying he found expert testimonies from senior figures reporting that technology obtained from extra-terrestrials did exist.
At the time of his indictment, Paul McNulty, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, said: “Mr. McKinnon is charged with the biggest military computer hack of all time.”
If found guilty, McKinnon could be jailed for 70 years and fined as much as $1.75 million.
The truth may be out there somewhere, but for Gary McKinnon, it will be in the US. As the British hacker who infiltrated multiple US government computers searching for proof that aliens exist, McKinnon has lost his appeal of extradition and will face trial in US courts.
Between 2001 and 2002, McKinnon used a simple brute-force Perl script over a 56Kbps modem that tested default passwords against various systems in the US Army, Navy, Air Force, NASA, the Pentagon, and even the Department of Defense. He was also charged with shutting down the entire US Army’s Military District of Washington network—more than 2,000 computers in all—for 24 hours.
The UK’s National Hi-Tech Crime Unit ultimately caught and arrested McKinnon under the Computer Misuse Act. The US asked for extradition, which, according to critics, would allow McKinnon to be used as an example and a deterrent to future hackers.
In 2006, the UK approved McKinnon’s extradition to the US, after which he announced plans to appeal the decision. According to Reuters, the hacker’s appeal made it to the House of Lords—Britain’s highest court—where it has just been denied.
McKinnon claims that he was only searching for proof that aliens exist, but he faces penalties of up to 70 years in prison and fines that could amount to $1.75 million. Paul McNulty, US Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, dubbed McKinnon’s crime “the biggest military computer hack of all time,” which critics of his extradition are citing as a prime reason why he could receive a punishment disproportionate to his deeds.
Further muddying the question of exactly how much damage McKinnon did are his claims of finding evidence from other hackers who accessed the same computer systems he did, but successfully evaded detection. Based on previous sentences for similar crimes, critics say the potential for up to 70 years in prison and $1.75 million in fines are outlandish punishments and a breach of his human rights for the $700,000 in damages McKinnon is accused of causing.
“I never got money for reprogramming Echostar cards. Someone is trying to set me up,” said Christopher Tarnovsky with regards to the allegations leveled against him.
News Corp claims hackers only assisted in internal network security
The world’s “second best hacker” says he was hired under the table by media conglomerate News Corp, which owns the Wall Street Journal, MySpace, Fox News, and DirecTV.
Christopher Tarnovsky, testifying in Echostar v. NDS, says he was paid $20,000 — mailed inside electronics sent from Canada — to break into DISH Network’s satellite system and steal security codes necessary for pirating DISH Network’s satellite signals. EchoStar communications, which owned the DISH Network before a split in December of 2007, alleges that hackers from NDS Group, owned by News Corporation, employed hackers to flood the market with smart cards for satellite receivers designed specifically to steal paid DISH content. Both EchoStar and DISH, as separate entities, are plaintiffs in the case.
The suit alleges that the smart cards cost DISH $900M in lost sales and network repairs.
Tarnovsky says that while he was employed to develop “pirating software,” it was not used against DISH or any other rival – instead, it was designed to secure DirecTV’s network.
DISH attorneys said Tarnovsky constructed a device called “The Stinger” – which Tarnovsky admitted to doing – that was able to interface with any smart card, regardless of which company it was designed to work with. Tarnovsky says his actions with The Stinger were aboveboard, but DISH attorneys claimed that hackers and/or NDS employees used it to reprogram at least 50 DISH Network smart cards.
“I never got money for reprogramming Echostar cards,” Tarnovsky testified. “Someone is trying to set me up.”
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