20 Years in Jail: The Price for Hacking a University Computer

Two men, one of whom worked on the computer help desk at the California State University at Fresno, could be sentenced to 20 years of jail time if convicted of breaking into the university system to change their grades.

The grand jury indictments were handed down on October 25, and reported by Infoworld last Friday. The man who worked on the help desk allegedly got hold of his supervisor’s password, and used that to gain access to the university’s Web-based PeopleSoft academic record system, as well as the username and password of the university registrar. He then increased his own grades, and those of a friend who paid him cash for the service.

The length of the possible sentence—along with a potential fine of $250,000—has roiled the tech blogs. Many people seem outraged by the severity, arguing that the offense is no different than picking the lock on your grade school teacher’s desk and changing test grades recorded in her notebook. Bad, but not horrible.

But others point out that it’s not the grade-changing that’s terrible in itself. The true crime is hacking into a computer system that contains privileged, sensitive information about people’s identities, salary histories and more, they say, and that is really dangerous. A severe sentence, these people argue, would send a clear deterrent message. —Josh Fischman