Security News > 2011 > January > Springs man sent to prison for hacking into TSA computer

http://www.gazette.com/articles/damage-110969-judge-springs.html By JOHN C. ENSSLIN THE GAZETTE January 11, 2011 A federal judge Tuesday sentenced a Colorado Springs man to two years in prison for trying to damage a high-security government computer system used to screen airline passengers. Judge David M. Ebel also ordered Douglas James Duchak to pay $60,587 in restitution to the U.S. Transportation Security Administration for repairs needed after he introduced a code into the system that would have disrupted the agency’s ability to compare arrest warrants against the names of air travelers. According to court records, the incident occurred on Oct. 23, 2009, while Duchak worked at the TSA’s operations center in Colorado Springs, days after he had been notified by a TSA contractor that his job was about to be terminated. Investigators said security cameras and other data showed Duchak entering the operation center after hours that night about the same time that the unauthorized code was entered. If activated, the code would have disrupted TSA’s ability to vet names against its “no fly” list temporarily, court records stated. [...]

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