Tag Archives: Unauthorized Access

Fifth Circuit Upholds CFAA Conviction for Former Employee’s Misuse Causing Damage Based on Circumstantial Evidence

In United States v. Anastasio N. Laoutaris, 2018 WL 614943 (5th Cir. Jan. 29, 2018), the United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a jury verdict finding Laoutaris guilty of two counts of computer intrusion causing damage, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1030(a)(5)(A) and (c)(4)(B)(i) of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. Laoutaris …

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Hacking Into A Company You Sold Can Get You Jail Time

A federal judge sentenced David Kent to a year and a day in prison and ordered him to pay $3.3 million in restitution and pay a $20,000 fine for accessing the computer network of Rigzone.com, an industry-specific networking website. Kent founded Rigzone.com, sold it for $51 million, and after the sale accessed the company’s network to obtain …

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Fifth Circuit: Employee Taking Data to Work for Competitor Violates Texas Hacking Law

Before leaving his employment at Merritt Hawkins & Associates (MHA), Larry Gresham allegedly accessed MHA’s computer network and copied 400 of MHA’s proprietary files and then deleted hundreds of files in an attempt to hide his activities. A jury found Gresham’s actions violated the Harmful Access by Computer Act (HACA), Texas unauthorized access law (i.e., “hacking …

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Insider Misuse of Computers: No Big Deal? It Can Be a Data Breach, Ask Boeing

Insider misuse triggers a breach just like outside hackers. When a company’s information is compromised because of insider[1] misuse of computers or information, regardless of insider’s intentions, the result for the company and the data subjects of that information is often the same as if it were an attack by an outside adversary – it …

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3 Key Takeaways About Texas’ Unauthorized Access Law

The Dallas Court of Appeals recently decided a civil case involving claims under Texas’ unauthorized access of computer law that provides some helpful guidance for this relatively new law that has very little case law construing it. The 3 takeaways that follow are the key legal principles that apply to this law as set forth …

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