Tennessee Man Indicted in Hacking of Palin's E-Mail Account

[CrimsonWhite]

Ahhh....good point.

That is what makes it a crime.

 

[Navy1960]

Traditionally for a first offense in a crime where no outward damage has been done , kids like this will get off pretty light.

According to the indictment, from October 2003 through November 9, 2003, SALCEDO, BOTBYL, and TIMMINS conspired and schemed to gain unauthorized access to the nationwide computer system used by Lowe’s Companies, Inc. and, after gaining access, to download and steal credit card account numbers from that computer system. In order to carry out this scheme, the defendants secretly compromised the wireless network at a Lowe’s retail store in Southfield, Michigan, and thereby gained unauthorized access to Lowe’s Companies, Inc.’s central computer system in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina and, ultimately, to computer systems located in Lowe’s retail stores around the United States. Having gained this unauthorized access, the defendants then attempted to install and installed a computer program on the computer system of several Lowe’s retail stores, which program was designed to capture the credit card information of customers conducting transactions with those stores.

SALCEDO, BOTBYL, and TIMMINS face maximum sentences of 170 years in prison if convicted on all counts. However, it is important to note that any sentence received upon conviction will be determined by the federal Sentencing Guidelines. Under the federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Court determines each defendant’s actual sentence based upon a formula that takes into account the severity and characteristics of the offense and each defendant’s criminal history, if any. Of course, defendants in criminal cases are entitled to a presumption of innocence, and the Government has the burden of proving all charges beyond a reasonable doubt.

In the case of a California Hacker that hacked into a medical computer and erased patient files his sentence was more severe than say someone who would hack into a file and just look around.