NASA computer hacker caught

WASHINGTON, June 3 (UPI) _ Federal officials are investigating a Delaware teenager who went on ``a cracking spree'' to
leave his message on a worldwide web page running from NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. 

NASA Inspector General Roberta Gross says Monday the incident shows ``how we are vulnerable via the Internet.'' 

The unidentified hacker's personal computer was confiscated May 26 by special agents of the NASA Inspector General's
Computer Crimes Division. 

Authorities said Tuesday the teen was caught after he altered the web site, overwriting the NASA message. 

The hacker's message said: ``We own you. Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when we practice to deceive. This page is
here to express many people's feelings towards the release of Kevin Mitnick. Many of you government sysadmins are
extremely stupid. You guys have to learn security before you can PUNISH people for it. What the hell do you know about it?
We feel all knowledge should be FREE....'' 

The teen was seeking support for Mitnick, a computer hacker indicted last year in connection with a multimillion-dollar
computer crime wave. 

Gross says, ``Hackers are increasing in number and in frequency of attack. Although the progress of information technology
has been remarkable, in many ways NASA is facing more serious threats than ever before.'' 

The computer break-in was discovered by the information technology security team at Marshall Space Flight Center. 

Gross says, ``There is a delicate balance between NASA's desire to share and disseminate information world-wide to the user
science community and the need for controls inherent in a world class security structure.'' 

Gross says the problems created by hackers ``can be avoided by ensuring that computer system administrators not run their
Internet servers using default or out-of-the-box configurations of software.'' 

NASA's Computer Crimes Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Edmond ``Corky'' Falgowsky of Delaware are continuing the
investigation. 

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