He passed away at 59 Kevin Mitnick, considered one of the most famous and skilled hackers in the history of the Internet. The news of his death has been confirmed in these hours by various sources to the American press, and is attributed to pancreatic cancer which he had been diagnosed with about a year ago.
Mitnick was for years the prime target of the FBI, which pursued him for his numerous computer crimes committed in the 1990s. Among his most famous businesses, there is the theft of thousands of files, data and credit cards from American computers, which has undermined the security of governments, companies and universities. Mitnick has always defended himself by saying that he has never stolen money, only information.
The Kevin Mitnick Story
His passion for hacking began in 1979, when he hacked his first computer network. Since then, he has used his extraordinary computer skills to infiltrate the telephone networks and cell phones of millions of people. In 1995, after a long manhunt, Mitnick was arrested by the FBI and charged with illegal use of a dial-up access device and computer fraud.
“I’ve never stolen a single dollar from the pockets of citizens,” the hacker defended, but the information he had stolen was worth far more than simple theft. In fact, his case caused a sensation because he was believed to have access to corporate trade secrets worth millions of dollars.
“It was a very big threat,” he said at the time Kent Walker, former Assistant US Attorney in San Francisco. The New York Times was also a victim of his exploits, when in 1998 its website was hacked by a group of Mitnick supporters, which forced the newspaper to remain offline for several days.
At trial Mitnick pleaded guilty and in 1996 and was sentenced to 46 months in prison. He was also prohibited from using a computer or cell phone without permission for three years after his release.
Mitnick Security Consulting: the bright side of hacking
After serving his sentence, the hacker changed his life at the beginning of the new millennium by founding the Mitnick Security Consulting, a consulting firm specializing in cyber security. Mitnick thus devoted himself to protecting computer networks rather than hacking them.
Kevin Mitnick was a controversial and fascinating character who marked the history of hacking and computer culture. He will be remembered as the most wanted hacker in history.