DataBreaches.net

DataBreaches.net

The Office of Inadequate Security

Menu
  • Breach Laws
  • About
  • Donate
  • Contact
  • Privacy
  • Transparency Reports
Menu

Prosecutors Admit They Don’t Understand What Weev Did, But They’re Sure It’s Like Blowing Up A Nuclear Plant

Posted on March 20, 2014 by Dissent

Perhaps one of the stupidest things a prosecutor trying to defend criminal prosecution under CFAA can say is to admit that they have no understanding of what the alleged “hacker” did that made his conduct a hack or violation of CFAA.

But that’s pretty much what happened in a Philadelphia courtroom yesterday during Weev’s appeal of his conviction. Mike Masnick of TechDirt has some good coverage of it:

We’ve been covering the ridiculous DOJ case against Andrew “weev” Auernheimer for quite some time. If you don’t recall, Auernheimer and a partner found a really blatant security hole on AT&T’s servers that allowed them to very easily find out the email addresses of iPad owners. There was no breaking in to anything. The issue was that AT&T left this all exposed. But, with a very dangerous reading of the CFAA (Computer Fraud and Abuse Act) and a bunch of folks who don’t understand basic technology, weev wassentenced to 3.5 years in jail (and has been kept in solitary confinement for much of his stay so far). Part of the case is complicated by the fact that weev is kind of a world class jerk — who took great thrill in being an extreme online troll, getting a thrill out of making others miserable. But, that point should have no standing in whether or not exposing a security hole by basically entering a URL that AT&T failed to secure, becomes a criminal activity.

Throughout the case, it’s been clear that the DOJ was trying to make up an interpretation of the law that had no basis in the actual technology world. And it became abundantly clear at a hearing before the appeals court concerning weev’s case, that the DOJ really has no idea what weev did. They’re just sure it’s bad because it involves computers and stuff. Seriously, as reported by Vice:

“He had to decrypt and decode, and do all of these things I don’t even understand,” Assistant US Attorney Glenn Moramarco argued.

Read more on TechDirt.

Related Posts:

  • "Weev's" conviction reversed on appeal
  • AT&T iPad hacker appeals conviction, long sentence
  • "Weev" hijacked 29,000 printers to spew anti-Semitic…
  • Reply Brief Filed in United States v. Auernheimer
  • "Weev" obtains, leaks 11 undercover Planned…

Post navigation

← University of Northern Iowa doubts stolen laptop linked to ID theft
Marian Regional Medical Center notifies patients whose files were sent to the wrong insurance plan →

Sponsored or Paid Posts

This site doesn’t accept sponsored posts and doesn’t respond to requests about them.

Have a News Tip?

Email:

Breaches[at]Protonmail.ch
Tips[at]DataBreaches.net

Signal: +1 516-776-7756

Telegram: @DissentDoe

Browse by News Section

Latest Posts

  • The Untold Story of a Massive Hack at HHS in Covid’s Early Days
  • Records reveal new information about Sweetwater Union High School District ransomware incident
  • HHS’ Office for Civil Rights Settles First Ever Phishing Cyber-Attack Investigation
  • Founder and Majority Owner of Cryptocurrency Exchange Pleads Guilty to Unlicensed Money Transmitting
  • Hackers hit Erris water in stance over Israel
  • Data breach by Addenbrooke’s Hospital reveals patient information
  • Millions of patient scans and health records spilling online thanks to decades-old protocol bug
  • Cybersecurity: Federal Agencies Made Progress, but Need to Fully Implement Incident Response Requirements (GAO Report)

Please Donate

If you can, please donate XMR to our Monero wallet because the entities whose breaches we expose are definitely not supporting our work and are generally trying to chill our speech!

Donate- Scan QR Code   Donate!

Social Media

Find me on Infosec.Exchange.

I am also on Telegram @DissentDoe.

RSS

Grab the RSS Feed

Copyright

© 2009 – 2023, DataBreaches.net and DataBreaches LLC. All rights reserved.

HIGH PRAISE, INDEED!

“You translate “Nerd” into understandable “English” — Victor Gevers of GDI Foundation, talking about DataBreaches.net

©2023 DataBreaches.net