Re: US to yank Kevin Mitnick's radio license

[InfoSec News <isn () c4i org>]

Forwarded from: Telemann Mediatrix <genie () spunge org>

In 1994 I was arrested for several different crimes, 11 felonies, 9
were federal offenses. I was 16 and I was curious as to how some of
the equipment worked. I accidentally took down another county next to
the one I was living in. The county was a rural area with less than
2,000 people. The police raided my home, arrested me. Went through all
of our things, read personal letters and even looked through our photo
albums of family. I had some pictures on my computer I had downloaded
from playboy.com, which were considered pornography in Oklahoma. (Or
so they said.) Because of that fact they charged me with Exhibition of
indecent and obscene material since they were accessible from my BBS.
I was portrayed on the news as a hacker and phreaker. They took every
electrical appliance in the house, tore the house apart and sent me to
a group home for 6 months, until I turned 17. After my release, the
police constantly drove past my house shining lights in my windows,
stopping and shining them in my car and pulling me over just to bother
me.  I had to move far away. I *NEVER* got anything back that they
took and my record was *NEVER* destroyed like it should have been
since I was a minor. I can never work for AT&T (big loss) and if I am
caught doing anything remotely suspicous I am immidiately jailed. Now
I live 4 states away and changed everything I could about myself. They
hold it all against me even though I was a child who was just curious.
I will never be able to return to my home town and m name is mud
there. The other parents saw the news cast (on which I was portrayed
as a pornographer) and forbid the other children from playing with me.

I admit I had broken more laws than I care to mention and I explored
the phone system in ways that are considered highly illegal, but it
was all to learn and to grow. I can understand their view, but really,
how many of us made bad decisions when we were children? And through
all of it, I ended up working for Nortel Broadband building OC-192's.  
But I still get questioned by contracting companies as to why I am
blacklisted by AT&T. Being a hacker/phreaker who has been caught is a
hell I wouldn't wish on anyone. I hope the information I provided was
of interest. 

Telemann Mediatrix



12/25/2001 3:35:29 AM, InfoSec News <isn () c4i org> wrote:

> Forwarded from: Robert G. Ferrell <rferrell () texas net>
>
> > Mitnick's had a ham radio license for about 25 years, and he
> > applied two years ago for what's normally a routine renewal. He's
> > not accused of making any illicit radio transmissions or any
> > offenses that fall under the FCC's jurisdiction -- it's just that
> > official Washington firmly believes computer hacking must be an
> > unforgivable venal sin.
>
> Sometimes when I look at the government and its treatment of people
> like Kevin, I get the unmistakable impression that I've seen this
> behavior somewhere before, but I can't quite put my finger on where.
> Today, it finally dawned on me.
>
> I have four cats (it's okay--I live on 44 acres in Texas, not in an
> efficiency apartment in Queens).  Two of them are males, and two
> females.  The oldest female has assumed, much to her chagrin, the role
> of 'lowest creature on the food chain' in the local feline dynasty.  
> What this means is that any time one of the cats is disciplined, the
> hapless female eventually gets the worst of it because all of the
> other cats take it out on her. This is an application of the
> 'trickle-down' principle, but in her case it's more of a
> 'flash-flood.'
 
[...]



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