U.S. Department of Justice on Benjamin Troy Breuninger

[InfoSec News <isn () c4i org>]

http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/can/press/html/2002_01_08_breuninger.html

U.S. Department of Justice

United States Attorney
Northern District of California
 
11th Floor, Federal Building
450 Golden Gate Avenue, Box 36055
San Francisco, California  94102

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
 
Tel: (415) 436-7200
Fax: (415) 436-7234
 
  
January 8, 2002

The United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of
California announced that Benjamin Troy Breuninger, a/k/a Kon, a/k/a
Konceptor, pled guilty yesterday afternoon to unauthorized access of a
protected computer and recklessly causing damage, in violation of 18
U.S.C.  1030(a)(5)(B).

Mr. Breuninger, 22, of Bloomington, Minnesota, was indicted by a
federal grand jury on September 7, 2000.  He was charged with one
count of unauthorized access of a protected computer and recklessly
causing damage, in violation of 18 U.S.C.  1030(a)(5)(B). Under the
plea agreement, Mr. Breuninger pled guilty to the lone count charged.

In pleading guilty, Mr. Breuninger admitted that, on November 3, 1999,
without authorization, he intentionally gained access to the Lawrence
Livermore National Lab's unclassified computer network.  Once he
obtained access to the computer system, he placed software programs on
the system that gave him further control of the system as well as
continued access.  Over the next 10 days, he re-entered the system
several times and, among other things, downloaded budget material from
the laboratory's computer network.  As a result of his actions,
numerous lab employees spent time resecuring the network.  The loss
due to the employees' efforts exceeded $20,000.

The sentencing of Mr. Breuninger is scheduled for April 12, 2002
before Judge D. Lowell Jensen in Oakland.  The maximum statutory
penalty for each count in violation of 18 U.S.C.  1030(a)(5)(B) is
five years and a fine of $250,000, plus restitution.  However, the
actual sentence be dictated by the Federal Sentencing Guidelines,
which take into account a number of factors, and will be imposed in
the discretion of the Court.

The prosecution is the result of a 21-month investigation by the
Department of Energy, Office of the Inspector General, Technology
Crimes Section and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Computer
Intrusion Squad.  Ismail J. Ramsey and Christina Hua are the Assistant
U.S. Attorneys who prosecuted the case with the assistance of Elaine
Rene-McCoy.

A copy of this press release and related court documents may be found
on the U.S. Attorney's Office website at www.usdoj.gov/usao/can.

All press inquiries to the U.S. Attorney's Office should be directed
to Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew J. Jacobs at (415)436-7181.


 

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