British Hacker Jailed for 6 Months

One of the Northumbria University students has received a six months sentence after refusing to disclose encryption passwords to his computer. Christopher Wilson was charged with hacking police online services after authorities claimed that they wanted to see the contents of his PC in the interests of national security.

Nevertheless, just as many similar cases, all is not as it seems. Christopher Wilson, who suffers from Asperger’s Syndrome, caused the Northumbria Police website to shut down by making a call to the force using a voice-changing device and warning of a cyber attack.

The police investigating him discovered that he sent online messages about “trolling” the Newcastle police department, as well as about infiltrating the secret files of the Serious Organised Crime Agency. Moreover, Wilson even suggested sending nasty messages on a condolence page established for two police officers who were shot dead in Manchester.

Wilson, who is currently excelling on a Master’s degree in computers, has created his own business programming artificial intelligence systems and was studying at Northumbria University. Back in 2013, a judge ordered the student to hand over his passwords in the interests of national security, but Wilson refused to provide any of the 50 that police officers asked for.

The student admitted refusing to hand over his passwords in breach of the Regulatory Investigatory Powers Act 2000, an offence under terrorism legislation. The judge told him that his actions were for his own satisfaction, showing what he could do with his undoubted skill with computers. However, the offence is very serious and the judge couldn’t avoid an immediate custodial sentence.

This case is a good example of how daft everything can get. Prosecutors didn’t even claim that Wilson was successful in hacking anything – just that he had an interest in doing so. His lawyer admitted that the student has expressed genuine remorse and bitterly regrets his actions. Wilson was 19 at the time of the breach and due to his Asperger’s Syndrome he matured more slowly than others.

Christopher Wilson was referred to as a bright and talented student, who is due to complete his Master’s in the early 2015 and is on course for a distinction having excelled.