[sergioj97]

I had a similar experience being 13, but luckily for me it only involved my own highschool website and data. I found a blind sql injection and got access to the credentials of any user. I wasn't a particularly mature 13 y/o so I started messing around.

My highschool reported the incidents and I got caught in a few weeks. I almost went to trial, my hard drive with my StarCraftII campaign almost finished was confiscated (I haven't seen it again since that moment) and it was overall an instructing episode. It didn't go any further because my parents had good relations with the highschool's direction and they withdrawed the report as soon as they knew it was me.

In the following years I kept in contact with the webmaster and I remember feeling very encouraged to report any other flaw I could find to him. I found a few more things over the years, but most importantly learned a lot.

Every time I read news like this I remember how grateful I felt when my highschool not only forgave me but also helped me keep learning. I believe it can make a difference, and even more so when dealing with younger kids.

[earthboundkid]

Yeah, it’s cliche but for kids, the quote they “were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn’t stop to think if they should” really applies. You’re smart enough to hack the system but not smart enough to know that it’s a really bad idea.