Hacker of US military data to fight extradition

A BRITISH computer expert was last night preparing to fight extradition to America where he is accused of being the biggest hacker of military computers ever.

Gary McKinnon, 36, is alleged to have tapped into 92 separate US military and NASA networks, including the Pentagon, during a year-long campaign.

The alleged offences are said to have caused 1bn worth of damage across 14 states, brought internet access for 2,000 users to a standstill for three days and shut down another 300 computers at a munitionscentre for a week.

American authorities have confirmed they will serve extradition papers on McKinnon, of Hornsey, north London, but said it would be several weeks before they are presented to Britain. McKinnon, who could face 10 years in jail if convicted, vowed to fight any application.

The news came as it emerged English police had to release the unemployed computer administrator two month’s ago to allow the US to proceed with their planned prosecution.

McKinnon was indicted in his absence in two US courts on Tuesday on eight counts of computer-related crimes and he could be tried separately in Virginia and New Jersey.

McKinnon downloaded sensitive, but not classified, information about subjects that included navy shipbuilding and munitions, investigators said.

But there was no evidence that he offered the information to foreign governments or terrorist organisations, said Paul McNulty the federal prosecutor dealing with the case.

“I suppose he was hoping to gain access to classified information,” McNulty said, acknowledging that authorities weren’t certain of a motive for the break-ins.

US officials sought to reassure the public only about 100 of the military’s networks were apparently vulnerable to break-ins out of tens of thousands that McKinnon allegedly probed using automated software tools.

Some civilian experts expressed astonishment that this many US military systems were so vulnerable to techniques derided by many hackers as simplistic.

McKinnon also was accused of dramatically disrupting military networks in Washington and New Jersey. Prosecutors said he deleted important files, including 1,300 user accounts, and caused the failure of computers controlling the network for the military district in Washington.