NC- Ex-Mass. inmate charged in prison computer hacking

11-7-2008 North Carolina:

Personnel data sent to convicts

Authorities arrested a former Massachusetts prisoner in North Carolina on Wednesday and charged him with hacking into a Plymouth prison's computer system and providing inmates with a list of current and former prison workers, US Attorney Michael J. Sullivan said yesterday.

Francis G. Janosko, 42, whose last known address was in South Carolina, allegedly hacked into the Plymouth County Correctional Facility's computer's management program and provided inmates with access to the names, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, home addresses, and telephone numbers of more than 1,100 current and former prison employees.

He was indicted Oct. 29 on one count of intentional damage to a protected computer and one count of aggravated identity theft, Sullivan said in a statement.

Following Janosko's arrest Wednesday, the indictment was unsealed.

Janosko is scheduled to appear today in federal court in North Carolina, said Christina DiIorio-Sterling, US attorney spokeswoman.

The Plymouth prison allowed inmates to use computers to research legal matters, according to the indictment, but they did not have access to the Internet, e-mail, the prison network, or other computer programs.

Janosko configured the prison's computer network between Oct. 1, 2006, and Feb. 7, 2007, to allow inmates to access a list of information about former and current prison employees, the indictment said.

He could face up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 if convicted on the computer charge and two years in prison if convicted of identity theft.

Police arrested Janosko in Plymouth in December 2005 on child pornography charges after investigators discovered nude photos of children on his cellphone, the third time he faced such charges, police told the Globe in 2005.

He was listed as a Level 3, or high-risk, sex offender in Massachusetts in 2005.

The FBI conducted the current investigation, with help from the Plymouth County Sheriff's Department. ..News Source.. by Jeannie M. Nuss