Feds arrest Queensland youth over ISP hack - News - Security

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This story was printed from ZDNet Australia.
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Feds arrest Queensland youth over ISP hack

By Staff writers, ZDNet Australia
October 29, 2003
URL: http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/security/soa/Feds-arrest-Queensland-youth-over-ISP-hack/0,130061744,120280271,00.htm

The Australian Federal Police have arrested a 17-year-old youth for allegedly hacking into a "prominent" Australian Internet service provider (ISP).

The arrest of the youth in Brisbane follows the filing of a complaint by the as yet unnamed ISP on the 23rd of October. A statement issued by the Australian High Tech Crime centre says the investigation took less than 24 hours to resolve. The youth will face court on two counts of unauthorised access to computer systems using the telecommunications network under provision in the Criminal Code Act 1995. It is also alleged the youth gained unauthorised access to a university network in the United Kingdom.

AHTCC director, federal agent Alastair MacGibbon, said the arrest should serve as a warning to others. "We hope this serves as a warning to others who may be contemplating this type of criminal activity," he said in a statement. "We regard computer hacking as a very serious issue and will continue working closely with Australian and international agencies to ensure the people who commit crimes of this nature face the full consequences of the law."

It is hoped the swift arrest of the alleged offender will encourage other ISPs to come forward "quickly should they detect any unauthorised use of their systems," MacGibbon added.

The arrest is the first of its kind under the Criminal Code Act.

Although the exact details of the alleged offences have not yet been made public, MacGibbon said the offences were serious. "The [illegal] hacking incidents in this particular case were serious. Once the ISP involved realised a breach had occurred, they contacted us quickly and were very cooperative with providing information," he said.