Alum Kills Over $58,000 in PC Gear With 'USB Killer' Device
The student in question is Vishwanath Akuthota. He graduated from [The College of St. Rose] in Albany, New York back in 2017. Yet, according to the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ), Akuthota "admitted that he intentionally destroyed the computers and recorded himself doing so using his iPhone, including making statements such as 'I'm going to kill this guy' before inserting the USB Killer into a computer's USB port." The video hasn't been published.
Akuthota also recognized that he caused more than $58,000 in damage to The College of St. Rose and has agreed to pay back that amount to the school. (And here we thought people only had to pay that kind of money for their alma mater when their student loans come due.) The DoJ said he "faces up to 10 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000 and a term of post-imprisonment supervised release of up to 3 years" after sentencing.
Best advertising ever for USB Killer?
Also at The Verge.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 21 2019, @09:04AM (8 children)
That's insane.
(Score: 1, Disagree) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 21 2019, @09:09AM (3 children)
Yeah, should be longer. Intentionally destroying people's property with malice and forethought is a crime worthy of severe punishment. Respecting other people's property is a basic principle of life yet we have to legislate it.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 21 2019, @10:17AM (1 child)
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2019/04/21/sri-lanka-explosions-casualties-churches-hotels-targeted-easter/ [telegraph.co.uk]
(Score: -1, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 21 2019, @11:15AM
I think blowing him up on Easter, along with more than 130 other people, is a bit extreme. Prison will suffice.
(Score: 1) by Ethanol-fueled on Sunday April 21 2019, @05:03PM
Fucking with a man's PC is almost as bad as fucking with a man's car. If that fucking pussy messed with my PC I would give him a fate worse than death -- I would give him a BATH! AHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 21 2019, @12:11PM (3 children)
The key part is ‘up to’ 10 years
Still, as my father often asked me “what we’re you thinking?”
His future is essentially ruined.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 21 2019, @02:22PM
Maybe not. After he gets deported, as a college graduate he could go for a management career back in India.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 21 2019, @03:40PM (1 child)
Exactly. When you read "up to" on a sentence, especially a Federal sentence, it's like the theoretical maximum speed of a supercomputer. Most real crimes and most real computational problems will be much less.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 21 2019, @04:36PM
You generally get closer to the minimum (depending on the mood of the judge & prosecutor), unless you take the case to trial and ignore their "plea deals". Then they will try to hit you with everything they've got.