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| Kwak has been sentenced to five months in
jail. |
Experts at SophosLabs™, Sophos's global
network of virus, spyware and spam analysis centers, have reminded
companies of internal security risks as it is reported that a man
has been sentenced to jail for using spyware against his boss.
34-year-old Kenneth Kwak, a system auditor who had been working
on the computer security of the US Department of Education,
admitted placing spyware software on his supervisor's PC which
enabled him to access emails and other information. Kwak, of
Chantilly, Virginia, then shared the information he gathered with
others in his office.
"The US Government has adopted a 'zero tolerance' policy
regarding intrusions into its computer systems, and a clear message
is being sent out to its staff that hacks like this are not just
unacceptable but also criminal," said Graham Cluley, senior
technology consultant for Sophos. "All organizations should put
measures in place to reduce the risks - not only of external attack
by malware and internet hackers, but also of the threats which may
exist on their payroll."
US District Judge Royce Lamberth sentenced Kwak to five months
in prison, followed by five months of electronically monitored home
confinement. Kwak has also been ordered to pay the US government
$40,000, and will be on probation for three years.
"Kwak should be thankful that no evidence was found that his
hack was financially motivated, as that surely saved him from a
stiffer jail term," continued Cluley.
Sophos continues to recommend that computer users ensure their
anti-virus software is up-to-date, and that companies protect
themselves with a consolidated solution
which can defend them from the threats of viruses, spam and
spyware.
More than 100 million users in 150 countries rely on Sophos as the best protection against complex threats and data loss. Sophos is committed to providing security and data protection solutions that are simple to manage, deploy and use and that deliver the industry's lowest total cost of ownership. Sophos offers award-winning encryption, endpoint security, web, email, and network access control solutions backed by SophosLabs - a global network of threat intelligence centers. With more than two decades of experience, Sophos is regarded as a leader in security and data protection by top analyst firms and has received many industry awards.
Sophos is headquartered in Boston, US and Oxford, UK. More information is available at www.sophos.com.