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Hacker loses latest attempt to halt extradition
Nearly at last-chance saloon now.
By Jeremy Kirk, IDG News Service
Published: 11:01 GMT, 31 July 09
British hacker, Gary McKinnon, has failed in his latest attempt to block his extradition to the US, where he faces up to 60 years for hacking into US military institutions.
The High Court has ruled the extradition of Gary McKinnon, whose hacking exploits have drawn high-profile attention from Gordon Brown and celebrities such as David Gilmour of Pink Floyd, should proceed. Karen Todner, McKinnon's lawyer, said they would lodge an appeal within 28 days.
McKinnon's lawyers had asked the court to review a refusal by the director of public prosecutions (DPP) for England and Wales to prosecute the him in the UK British prosecutors maintain that the US wants jurisdiction and that most evidence and witnesses are in the US
McKinnon had also asked the court to review his extradition order, which was approved by the UK government in July 2006, on the basis of his diagnosis with Asperger Syndrome, a neurological disorder characterised by obsessive behaviour and deficiencies in social interaction.
He faces up to 60 years in prison for hacking into 97 US military and NASA computers between February 2001 and March 2002. He was indicted in 2002 in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.
While in the UK, McKinnon has freely admitted to hacking the computers using a program called "RemotelyAnywhere," a remote access tool. He has said that many of the computer systems still had their default passwords, which is generally considered a poor security practice, and that other passwords were easy to obtain.
McKinnon contends he didn't harm the computer but was merely searching for proof of the existence UFOs. The US military contends that McKinnon deleted critical files from its computers, which hampered its efforts after the 11 September, 2001, terrorist attacks.
Add your commentComments
Seriph | Published: 07:30 GMT, 04 August 2009
'held accountable for his crimes'? He has never denied he hacked those computers and he is not trying to get off without punishment, simply he wishes to be tried and punished here in the UK, his home country. I bet if the situation was reversed, and it was an american citezen wanted by british authorities, i bet you any money that america WOULD NOT extradite one of their own to be tried in another country. I dont feel he deserves all the negative commments and press he sometimes gets, Sure he did something wrong, and he has the guts to admit that and say sure, i'm guilty, all he wants is to be trialed in his home country, what is so wrong with that?
DanTe | Published: 18:12 GMT, 31 July 2009
A nice comfortable, isolated jail cell would be a perfect place for someone suffering from Asperger (Brat) Syndrome. And after a couple of run ins with the inmates, his obsessive behavior and deficiencies in social interaction will be cured.
Next Subject | Published: 17:21 GMT, 31 July 2009
It's time for Gary to be held accountable for his crimes. He should get at least 10 years in prison! Hopefully!