Evan Schuman writes: When two Boston-based federal judges sentence Albert Gonzalez Thursday (March 25) and Friday (March 26) for a rash of retail cyber-break-ins that he confessed to orchestrating, the exact sentence may be academic. The key legal argument is shaping up to be this question: “When a retailer is breached, what’s the most reasonable…
Haddonfield students arrested in computer hacking
Another hack-to-change-grades scheme? Several Haddonfield Memorial High School students are under police investigation on accusations they hacked into the school’s computer system. The breach was discovered in the last few days, and the students, whom school district officials declined to identify, have been turned over to local police and the Camden County Prosecutor’s Office. At…
Woman gets 3 years for credit-card thefts at park
Let’s never forget the low-tech headaches…. A Wyncote woman was sentenced yesterday to three years in prison in connection with credit-card thefts from people visiting Valley Forge National Historical Park and other public recreational spaces in 2006, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. Karen Battle, 35, and two codefendants were accused of credit card fraud and…
Western Australia’s Auditor General Finds Serious Weaknesses in Government Agencies’ Handling of Information
In his annual report on Information System Management in state government agencies, the Auditor General for Western Australia has identified serious weaknesses in the way many agencies manage their IT systems. The two-part Information Systems Audit Report, tabled in Parliament, found that government agencies were often failing to implement comprehensive controls over their IT systems…
An ACTA of insecurity
By now, the leaked copy of the January 18, 2010 draft of ACTA is all over the web. What I don’t understand is the notice on the cover: This document must be protected from unauthorized disclosure, but may be mailed or transmitted over unclassified e-mail or fax, discussed over unsecured phone lines, and stored on…
State Department Employee Sentenced for Illegally Accessing Confidential Passport Files
A State Department employee was sentenced today to 12 months of probation for illegally accessing more than 60 confidential passport application files, Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division announced. Debra Sue Brown, 47, of Oxon Hill, Md., was also ordered by U.S. Magistrate Judge John M. Facciola in the District of…