384 DEAR HACKER

384 DEAR HACKER

no way of knowing how someone will react to that kind of pressure until the time comes when they are confronted by it. Take heart in the fact that these days you can still wind up in prison and be considered a major threat to society without com- mitting crimes. When people recognize this, we have a chance of winning some important battles.

Dear 2600: On May 5, 1995 I was sentenced to 70 months in federal prison. The

judge ordered that upon my release I shall not use the “Internet or any other computer network.” I became the first person to be banned from the Internet. Additionally, the judge prohibited me from getting a job as a computer programmer (my hobby since age nine, and my career throughout high school and college). If I violate these conditions, I could be sent back to prison.

Although hacking was a “hobby” of mine for several years, I have never had a hacking-related criminal charge, and my current crime has noth- ing to do with computer programming or the Internet. I admit that I have committed undisputed crimes involving theft and sale of telephone equipment (stolen from Southwestern Bell Telephone). And for this I will spend five years in prison as punishment. But banning me from the Internet and from programming computers when I am out of prison is unjust and will not help foster my rehabilitation into society.

So on April 22, 1997, I filed a Federal habeas corpus petition chal- lenging my Internet ban on First Amendment (and other) grounds. I claimed that banning me from the Internet is a free speech violation in light of recent cases, like ACLU vs. Reno recently in the Supreme Court. The government has been ordered to respond to my petition by July 11, 1997. If I do not win in the district court, I will appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals and, if necessary, to the United States Supreme Court.

I am writing this letter for two reasons: (1) I need to find an interested

BEHIND THE WALLS

I want to publicize what the government is doing with this absurd “Internet ban” restriction as a Free Speech violation.

While I may be the first person banned from the Net, I won’t be the last. Recently, I learned through the Freedom of Information Act that the Departments of Justice and the Parole Commission plan to add restrictions to ban parolees from the Internet and to prohibit parolees from using or possessing encryption software (like PGP, or even PKZIP since it has an encryption option).

If you are interested in helping, or want more information, please visit my page on the Web.

Minor Threat

Dear 2600: I’m new to computers and the Internet. I was reading the news when

I saw an article about The New York Times. Then I read why it was “hacked” — because a man named Mitnick is being held prisoner wrongfully. So I put his name in the search thing and then I came to your page and read a bit. How can the government hold a person for over three years if they didn’t bring him to trial? What is he supposed to have done and do they have any evidence of whatever? I totally don’t get it. Go ahead, call me backward. I don’t even know what hackers do! All I know is to beware of viruses and I’m still paranoid about that! (People always say hackers give you viruses.)