Government to Seek Out Hacking Talent at Defcon Convention

Following a recent spike in cyber attacks against critical U.S. infrastructures, agencies across the federal government will be flocking this week to Las Vegas to attend the Defcon hacker convention to seek out and recruit the most talented members of the hacker community.

The convention attracts seasoned computer experts, and this year’s event is expected to exceed more than 10,000…

No Fashion Crime — Former Gucci Employee Charged with Hacking

This was no crime of fashion.

A former network engineer for Gucci was charged in New York this week in a 50-count indictment for illegally invading Gucci’s computer system, deleting emails, files, several virtual servers and shutting down a storage area network.

According to documents filed in court, Sam Chihlung Yin accessed the system by secretly creating a virtual private network with a fictional name. A month after he was…

Alleged Hacker Wants ‘Do Over’ of Trial; Complains Prison Food is ‘Yuky’

A Minnesota man who pleaded guilty to sending threatening emails to Vice President Joe Biden and then attempted to frame his neighbors who had accused him of kissing their 4-year-old child last week told a court he wants to withdraw the guilty plea and act as his own lawyer, according to StarTribune.

Barry Ardolf, 45, initially pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated identity theft,…

El Paso School District Website Pwned

A hacker identifying himself as TheSlayer compromised the El Paso Independent School District website late Tuesday night, causing the site to go off-line for 12 hours.

El Paso Times reported the culprit posted “a vulgar” animated picture and a message on the district’s homepage saying “Owned by TheSlayer.”

Officials said someone hacked into one of the district servers late Tuesday night and compromised the site for approximately a half-hour. As…

Suspected Nintendo Hacker Nabbed in Spain

Police in Spain have arrested a man for allegedly stealing personal data from thousands of Nintendo users by hacking into Nintendo Corp.’s online user database, the BBC reported.

The alleged hacker got his hands on data of 4,000 gamers, according to Spain’s Interior Ministry. The suspect allegedly threatened to contact the country’s data protection agency, accusing the firm of negligence.

When Nintendo failed to respond, he began leaking some of…

BBB Warns of Bogus Wi-Fi Hotspots

Better Business Bureau serving eastern North Carolina warns that hackers are taking advantage of travelers this holiday season by setting up fake Wi-Fi connections designed to steal personal information.

When searching for wireless connections, consumers may find an unsecured network connection available. However, that network may be a scam, and the consumer could be be surfing the web through the hacker’s computer. While…

Fashionista Hacker Pays $12,5K to Settle Conde Nast Copyright Claim

An Ohio man has given the term black hat new meaning: According to The Smoking Gun reports, fashion-obsessed Ross Ulrich hacked into a Condé Nast computer system to snatch photos and pages from several upcoming issues of fashion magazines to later post them on his blog FashionZag.

The 22-year-old graphic design student said he fessed up to his crimes as agents executed a search warrant at his family’s Columbus…

$4 Million Price Tag to Clean Up after OSU Hacker Attack

It can be costly to clean up after a security breach, just ask Ohio State University. After hackers broke into a school server that housed students’ names, Social Security numbers and other personal data, officials spent $4 million to pay for the forensic investigation and credit-protection services for those affected by the compromise.

In October, the university discovered a hacker had logged into an Ohio State…

Fired IT Technician Hacks Former Employer as Revenge

A woman who worked as an IT technician in Floria has been sentenced to 18 months in prison for breaking into her former employer’s computers and causing damage of at least $17,000.

Patricia Marie Fowler was found guilty Sept. 2, 2010, of computer intrusions causing damage of more than $5,000 to SCHC, a nonprofit federally qualified community health center.

According to trial testimony, Fowler was fired by…

Cocky Hacker Defaces Navy Memorial Site, Ridicules Admin

A hacker broke into the U.S. Navy Memorial website and left a message for the administrator, mocking him for the inadequate security and offering his assistance, Softpedia reports.

Operated by the U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation, www.navymemorial.org provides visitors information about the memorial, as well as news, annual reports and other services.

The breach was detected by Christopher Boyd, a senior threat researcher at GFI Software, who wrote…