Youth arrested over ISP hacking

[Aaron P]

Youth arrested over ISP hacking

Kate Mackenzie

OCTOBER 29, 2003

A COMPUTER crime squad has arrested a 17-year-old Brisbane youth for allegedly hacking the network of a "prominent" Australian internet service provider.

Investigators from the Australian High Tech Crime Centre, which is based in Melbourne, and the Australian Federal Police travelled to Brisbane last week to look into a complaint from the ISP, and subsequently searched the youth's home and workplace.

The alleged offender was charged with two counts of unauthorised access to computer systems using the telecommunications network.

The identity of the ISP and the nature of the alleged hacking could not be revealed until the matter was heard in court.

Australian High Tech Crime Centre director federal agent Alastair MacGibbon said he hoped the arrest served as a warning to would-be hackers, and appealed to any ISPs who believed they had been hacked to contact the centre.

Police and law enforcement agencies have long expressed concerns about companies' reluctance to report network intrusions, for fear of negative publicity.

The country's second-largest ISP, Optus, was hacked in November 2001, resulting in a guilty plea but no conviction being recorded against the perpetrator.

AFP acting deputy commissioner John Lawler said investigating high-tech crime continued to be a priority for the agency, despite its expanding role in counter-terrorism and human trafficking issues.

Source: http://australianit.news.com.au/common/pri...Enbv%5E,00.html