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Two Charged with Illegally Hacking University Grade Database
On October 25, 2007 two men were charged with hacking into California State University’s grades database. If convicted of the eleven counts, which include charges of unauthorized computer access, identity theft, conspiracy, and wire fraud, the men could be sentenced to up to 20 years in prison and $250,000 in fines.
Access to the grades database was apparently gained by way of one of the two men’s position at a University IT help centre. The password of a supervisor was obtained by way of “computer hacking techniques,” and this information was then used to obtain access to various usernames and passwords of people who had grade-changing authority for the University’s academic record system. The man then changed not only his own grades, but also those of his friend; the friend, however, paid cash for the change(s).
The scheme was only uncovered as a result of a routine audit conducted by the University’s IT staff that was designed to check the accuracy of a recent conversion from a legacy system to the Peoplesoft database that was ultimately hacked. The grades were apparently changed several times between January and June of 2004.
For additional information, visit:
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,139233-c,hackers/article.html