IT Chief Gets Prison Time for Hacking Former Employer’s Website

After pleading guilty to one count of intentionally damaging a protected computer without authorization, Darnell H. Albert-El was sentenced and ordered to pay $6,700 in restitution to his former employer.

According to court documents, Transmarx fired Albert-El from his position as IT director in 2008. During the time of his employment, Albert-El had administrator-level access to the company’s computer network, which included the company website that was hosted on a system located in Suwanee, Ga.

Albert-El admitted he used a personal computer and an administrator account and password to access the computer hosting the Transmarx website. After accessing the computer, he deleted roughly 1,000 files related to the Transmarx website, causing more than $6,000 in losses to the company.

The former IT director also admitted he caused the damage in retaliation for getting sacked from the company.