UK Home >  OUT-LAW News >  News Archive >  2008 >  July 2008 >  Rogue San Francisco sysadmin coughs up passwords

Rogue San Francisco sysadmin coughs up passwords

OUT-LAW News, 23/07/2008

San Francisco City Council regained access to its own computer network today after Mayor Gavin Newsom convinced network administrator Terry Childs to give them the passwords.

By John Oates for The Register. This story has been reproduced with permission.

Childs is in jail until he can raise $5m in bail. He is accused of blocking all access to the city's network and routers by resetting passwords. He initially refused to cough up the new password. But on Monday afternoon Newsom visited him in jail and persuaded him to hand over the necessary passwords.

After initial confusion, the passwords worked and city officials once again had access to their own network. Childs is accused also of installing hardware on the network to enable remote access.

Newsom said Childs was very good at what he did but had recently "become a bit maniacal", the San Fransico Chronicle reports. When first arrested, Childs refused to hand over access passwords.

He has pleaded not guilty to four counts of computer tampering.

Many have questioned why Childs' bail is so high and how he apparently so easily gained complete control of the city's computer system.

His lawyer will go to court today in an attempt to get his bail lowered.

© The Register 2008

 

Disclaimer: We hope you find OUT-LAW’s content useful. It’s prepared by the lawyers at Pinsent Masons. Please remember, though, that it’s intended as general information only. It’s not legal advice. If that’s what you’re seeking, please contact us. See also: our full disclaimer

 

OUT-LAW Recommends

This week's podcast
Bribery law extended

Advert: Pinsent Masons works with forensic accountants to help you to manage the costs of litigation. Our approach is called Reaching Solutions.
UK Home | 
2010 | 
2009 | 
2008
2007 | 
2006 | 
2005 | 
2004 | 
2003 | 
2002 | 
2001 | 
2000 | 
Fun | 

 

Pinsent Masons named Legal Firm of the Year 2009 at Finance Directors' Excellence Awards

OUT-LAW star: link to the home page
Disclaimer: This was printed from OUT-LAW.COM, a service of international law firm Pinsent Masons. We hope you find this content useful. However, please note that nothing in this document constitutes specific legal advice. You should consult a suitably qualified lawyer on any specific legal problem or matter. Any questions, please email info@out-law.com.