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Disgruntled Worker Hacks and Shuts Down Oil Leak System

by Terrence O'Brien on March 19, 2009 at 04:32 PM


Seriously, people. We've said it before but hacking your current or former employer because you're not happy with your job, desk, or termination is not a constructive way to deal with the problem.

The latest idiot to clearly overstep his legal boundaries is Mario Azar, a 28-year-old former IT worker for Pacific Energy Resources (PER). According to Wired, the Los Angeles resident has been indicted by a grand jury for allegedly disabling computer systems at PER that monitored oil pipelines for leaks, potentially allowing for an environmental catastrophe.

According to the indictment, Azar sought a permanent job from PER after his temporary contract expired. His request was rebuffed, so they allege Azar hacked into the company's servers and shut down the leak monitoring systems from his home.

Looks like that warning about IT guys turning to crime was spot on. [From: Wired]

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Tags: hack, hacking, hacks, it, job, oil, oil pipeline, OilPipeline, security, work

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