[unreal37]

Wow, you seem to be condoning theft here. The CRA website was hacked, using a hacking technique just discovered. It is not like "leaving a street-level window open". It's more like, a new way to pick a lock was discovered that no one knew existed, and he went around picking locks to see what he could find.

He knew he was hacking the CRA when he did it. He can't claim to have done it accidentally. The CRA did everything reasonable to secure their servers.

That said, he's a smart teenager playing with technology and did something he shouldn't have. As long as no one was harmed, and his intentions were just curiosity, I think he should get off pretty light. Hate to see his life ruined.

But you can't deny he hacked the CRA. He did.

[mindslight]

An open window is easily spotted, so it probably is more appropriate to say an unlocked window. I didn't deny that he hacked the CRA, or even that those actions are wrong in a sense (on a different day/topic I might make that argument..), but am just pointing out the draconian binary punishment for computer crimes that you're also referencing when you say "Hate to see his life ruined".

Let's say on a lark you go walking down the street trying doorknobs, open the first unlocked one, and sit down on the couch and watch TV until the owner gets home. You have trespassed, and if the owner presses charges you will most likely be punished. However, that punishment will most likely be commensurate with the severity of the crime, not life-altering years in prison.

[rbanffy]

> It is not like "leaving a street-level window open"

The OpenSSL thing is very much like suddenly discovering you had a street level window open for the past two years.