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Blind Hacker Targeted By FBI

by Tim Stevens on February 29, 2008 at 01:15 PM

Blind Hacker Targeted by FBIComputers are incredibly liberating things for many of us. People with physical disabilities can shed those handicaps when they get online and be just as capable as those who are free of disabilities. This is true even when it comes to hacking, as shown by the case of a blind 17-year-old Boston, MA-based hacker who goes by the nickname of "Li'l Hacker" and has found himself squarely in the crosshairs of the FBI.

His name is Matt (last name withheld due to his age) and he's been involved in a number of pranks, scams, and crimes that mostly fall within what is called phreaking. Phreaking is a form of hacking focused on exploiting the telephone infrastructure. Whether it be spoofing the caller ID system to make it look like you're someone else or just sweet-talking a customer service rep into disclosing a customer's Social Security Number, it's his forte.

One of his most notable crimes was calling 911 posing as a man in Colorado Springs, CO, and claiming that he was holding a family hostage. His caller ID location matched up and a local SWAT team went screaming to the house -- only to find a very confused but otherwise unharmed and certainly non-hostage family there. It's actions like these, combined with his cadre of phreaker friends, that have made him a federal target. He's less than two months away from turning 18, and, many believe, less than two months away from visiting a federal prison.

From Wired

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Tags: hacking, phone, phreaking

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