The hacker who got into Sarah Palin's Yahoo email account will do a year and a day of time, but in a halfway house instead of prison. Lucky him. Most people who were following the case expected little to no jail time and a minimal fine. Guess we know what happens when you pick on the wrong person.
David Kernell guessed Palin's security question and answer and was able to change her Yahoo email password, leading to charges of obstructing justice, identity theft, unlawful access to a computer, and was acquitted of wire fraud. Kernell was 20 at the time of the crime. His defense that her emails would be public because of the duties as governor gave the courts pause, but in the end he lost. Whether it is because he dared repost material on a known hacker site or just picked a BullyMoose is a topic of hot debate in hacker chats and boards.
Palin's only statement thus far is that she is "thankful that the jury thoroughly and carefully weighed the evidence and issued a just verdict." Indeed. I hope she picks a better password, because she will now find herself on a mighty short list of targets. If she doesn't know what black hat is, she will soon enough.
And seriously, use at least a single freaking number in your "secret" answer, 'kay? This public message is brought to you by your favorite neighborhood geek. Let's put her in charge of national secrets, and see what happens!
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