Security Researchers Submit Brief For Andrew "Weev" Auernheimer 161
USSJoin writes "Andrew Auernheimer (or Weev, as he's often better known) is serving a 41-month sentence under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. The case is currently on appeal to the Third Circuit Court of Appeals; his lawyer filed the appellate brief last week. Now, a group of 13 security researchers, led by Meredith Patterson, and including include Peiter "Mudge" Zatko, Space Rogue, Jericho, Shane MacDougall, and Dan Kaminsky, are making their own thoughts heard by the court. They are submitting a brief to the Third Circuit Court of Appeals that argues that not only is Weev's conviction bad law, but if upheld, it will destroy independent security research, and perhaps the rest of consumer safety research as well."
What Weev did (Score:5, Informative)
LOL (Score:0, Informative)
So independent researchers talk about their work in ways such as:
Auernheimer: this could be like, a future massive phishing operation serious like this is valuable data we have a list a potential complete list of AT&T iphone subscriber emails
Auernheimer: well i will say this it would be against the law for ME to short the att stock but if you want to do it go nuts
Auernheimer: lets not like do anything else we fucking win and i get to like spin us as a legitimate security organization
Yeah, he surely was working to only help those customers...
Re:Stretching the laws for corporations (Score:3, Informative)
The only people winning from legislation like that are the ones who would otherwise be sued for negligence.
And who do you think wrote the legislation?
Whenever laws like this are written, it's the corporate interests via their lobbyists who write the laws.
Then said Congressman on that particular corporation's buddy list, then submits the law as his own work.
Being a Congressman is a pretty cushy deal - 6 figure income, other people do your work, you get your ass kissed, travel around for free and get entertained, no worries about what the little people go through and it just goes on ....
If it weren't for the fact that I'm a really shitting liar (and couldn't keep a straight face with a platform needed to be elected), I'd jump on the job in a heartbeat!
Authoritarian governments (Score:2, Informative)
...will be the first pwned in a cyberwar because fear will have kept their system from ever being tested.
Re:What Weev did (Score:5, Informative)
He was also convicted of conspiracy to distribute those addresses for criminal purposes based on the fact that he... sold them to Russian fraudsters? No: disclosed them to a journalist. I guess the criminal purpose was embarrassing AT&T?
Re:Sorry (Score:2, Informative)
Ok, that link should be at the top of this discussion. After reading that I've no interest in seeing him get out of jail.