Devon schoolboy admits hacking websites around the world - expert comment
June 2016 by Marc Jacob
A 16-year-old schoolboy from Devon has admitted launching cyber-attacks on websites around the world including SeaWorld Orlando and his local police force. The teenager, who cannot be named, bombarded sites in Africa, Asia, Europe and North America. He admitted three charges of performing an act to hinder access to a programme under the Computer Misuse Act 1990. The offences relate to distributed denial of service attacks, which involve overwhelming a website with traffic, often taking it offline.
"For most of us that drive, we understand what happens if we repeatedly break the government’s driving laws – we lose our driver’s license and the privilege that goes along with it. Too bad we can’t do the same to those who break “cyber-crime laws”. Break the law, and lose your right to the Internet... That punishment would be far worse than a slap on the wrist."