North Carolina Man Charged with Illegally Accessing American College of Physicians Database (June 15, 2006) Read this whole thing. While this guy wasn’t on the up-and-up (or so it seems) this seems pretty odd.
If convicted, Bailey faces a maximum possible sentence of 55 years imprisonment, $2,750,000 in fines and a special assessment of $1100.
The case was investigated by the computer crimes squad of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It has been assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Michael L. Levy.
via Metafilter
I can’t find anything odd about it. It appears he has broken the law as stated in the complaint.
It’s obvious that it’s his business to market the databases and he seems to have over stepped the line.
I agree with #1. The guy was nothing more then a spammer looking for some new targets.
What’s odd is the prominence given to the EULA in the press release, and the implication that the EULA was the only protection for this confidential information.
Sure, throw away the key for spammers, but not for people who click through EULAs!
I agree with all. He is a spammer so i am not losing sleep over trouble for him. BUT if it was that easy for him to gain access then whats the security of the site then? if a EULA was all the protection then this shouldnt be a shock that someone did it.
According to the indictment, he accessed the database using names in a fradulent manner;
“Between on or about January 24, 2005, and on or about May 31, 2005, defendant WILLIAM A. BAILEY, JR., gained unauthorized access to the membership database of ACP, using accounts of legitimate members and downloaded information about members that was stored in the database.”
He used someone else’s name to access the site, that is the crux of the complaint. The reference to the EULA is to show that it was a private database and for non-commercial use.
Just a simple case of fraud. Nothing else to see here. Please move along…
From your post, I thought he had just accessed a high-priced reference database that libraries have. Instead it was a membership list. You should be cheering this prosecution of spammers/ID theft.
Nobody reads EULA’s.
EULAs say what can and cannot be done with software or data. And they say specifically that failing to comply with it, the full extent of the law will be applied. The EULA is there as a plan B mechanism, when software protection fails, or a workaround is found. Thats why nobody reads them.
It’s like trespassing. If you leave the door to your house open, people just can’t get in, unless invited to do so. Everybody knows that. It’s an unspoken EULA. If someone meets an EULA should be aware that it’s at a doorstep. Choosing to go in can be dangerous.
So…
Why is this news !?!
I disagree with you. It appears he has indeed broken the law according to the statement. It also appears he had intentions of selling these lists for financial gain. I feel he should suffer whatever penalty that he may receive as a result..
A click of the gun will get you life. Now a click of the mouse will get you just as much. The funny thing is some people convicted of murder end up doing less time than this guy may get.
So does this mean “Mouse Control”? You must get a license for a mouse, register it, and wait 5 days and go through a thorough backround check, before you get one?
I am not saying this guy did not break the law as others have said. Wouldn’t that be like having a gun loaded and unlocked for a child to use? Okay, a teenager or adult breaks into a house, fines a loaded unlocked gun, takes it and then later uses it to kill someone. Remember, they are tresspassing.
Of the American College of Physicians. When will they get these Drs. who use unprotected wireless to transfer patient data unencrypted?
I hope this guy does get some time. These spammers have caused a lot of havoc in cyberspace. Hell, I even got one from the CageMatch. I deleted it, because I took the warning from the website (Dvorak’s) that this may not be legit (so to speak).
This must be one of those work out of your house jobs and make a lot of money 🙂 — and get free healthcare.
The sad part is that because the American College of Physicians is a respectable organization with money and a lot of rich people, of course the Justice Department will go after anyone who hacks into their database. Complain as he might, do you think Dvorak Cage Match could have the FBI investigate the hacker that accessed its membership list?
I am almost always ashamed of my fellow citizens when they express their vengeful desire for draconian reaction to even the most petty of crimes, or when they pass judgement on alleged crimes that they have little or no actual knowledge of. This sort of thing is pretty common on blogs and message boards.
But this is about data collection and spam – AND I DEMAND THIS BASTARD BE NAILED TO A CROSS, BURNED AT THE STAKE, SHOT IN THE HEAD, AND DO A BILLION HOURS OF COMMUNITY SERVICE. Justice must be served!
#12, I’m glad you didn’t suggest something radical like dressing him in womens underwear first.