Chronology of the Hacker Crackdown


Law and Disorder on the Electronic Frontier by Bruce Sterling



1865
U.S. Secret Service (USSS) founded.
1876
Alexander Graham Bell invents telephone.
1878
First teenage males flung off phone system by enraged authorities.
1939
"Futurian" science-fiction group raided by Secret Service.
1971
Yippie phone phreaks start YIPL/TAP magazine.
1972
Ramparts magazine seized in blue-box rip-off scandal.
1978
Ward Christenson and Randy Suess create first personal computer bulletin board system.
1982
William Gibson coins term "cyberspace."
1982
"414 Gang" raided. 1983-1983 AT&T dismantled in divestiture. 1984 Congress passes Comprehensive Crime Control Act giving USSS jurisdiction over credit card fraud and computer fraud.
1984
"Legion of Doom" formed.
1984
2600: The Hacker Quarterly founded.
1984
Whole Earth Software Catalog published.
1985
First police "sting" bulletin board systems established.
1985
Whole Earth 'Lectronic Link computer conference (WELL) goes on-line.
1986
Computer Fraud and Abuse Act passed.
1986
Electronic Communications Privacy Act passed.
1987
Chicago prosecutors form Computer Fraud and Abuse Task Force.
1988
July. Secret Service covertly videotapes "SummerCon" hacker convention. September. "Prophet" cracks BellSouth AIMSX computer network and downloads E911 Document to his own computer and to Jolnet.
September. AT&T Corporate Information Security informed of Prophet's action. October. Bellcore Security informed of Prophet's action.
1989
January. Prophet uploads E911 Document to Knight Lightning. February 25. Knight Lightning publishes E911 Document in Phrack electronic newsletter. May. Chicago Task Force raids and arrests "Kyrie."
June. "NuPrometheus League" distributes Apple Computer proprietary software.
June 13. Florida probation office crossed with phone-sex line in switching-station stunt.
July. "Fry Guy" raided by USSS and Chicago Computer Fraud and Abuse Task Force.
July. Secret Service raids "Prophet", "Leftist", and "Urvile" in Georgia.
1990
January 15. Martin Luther King Day Crash strikes AT&T long-distance network nationwide.
January 18-19. Chicago Task Force raids Knight Lightning in St. Louis.
January 24. USSS and New York State Police raid "Phiber Optik", "Acid Phreak", and "Scorpion" in New York City.
February 1. USSS raids "Terminus" in Maryland.
February 3. Chicago Task Force raids Richard Andrews' home.
February 6. Chicago Task Force raids Richard Andrews' business.
February 6. USSS arrests Terminus, Prophet, Leftist, and Urvile.
February 9. Chicago Task Force arrests Knight Lightning.
February 20. AT&T Security shuts down public-access "attctc" computer in Dallas.
February 21. Chicago Task Force raids Robert Izenberg in Austin.
March 1. Chicago Task Force raids Steve Jackson Games, Inc., "Mentor," and "Erik Bloodaxe" in Austin.
May 7,8,9. USSS and Arizona Organized Crime and Racketeering Bureau conduct "Operation Sundevil" raids in Cincinnatti, Detroit, Los Angeles, Miami, Newark, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Richmond, Tucson, San Diego, San Jose, and San Francisco. May. FBI interviews John Perry Barlow re NuPrometheus case.
June. Mitch Kapor and Barlow found Electronic Frontier Foundation; Barlow publishes Crime and Puzzlement manifesto.
July 24-27. Trial of Knight Lightning.
1991
February. CPSR Roundtable in Washington, D.C.
March 25-28. Computers, Freedom and Privacy conference in San Francisco.
May 1. Electronic Frontier Foundation, Steve Jackson, and others file suit against members of Chicago Task Force.
July 1-2. Switching station phone software crash affects Washington, Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, San Francisco.
September 17. AT&T phone crash affects New York City and three airports.


Literary Freeware: Not for Commercial Use

Copyright (c) 1992, 1994 Bruce Sterling - bruces@well.sf.ca.us.

This HTML version was converted by David Hedbor <neotron@lysator.liu.se> in November 1994, based on the text edition verison 1.2.

The original plain ASCII files are available electronically by Gopher from tic.com.

Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of this publication provided the copyright notice and this permission notice are preserved on all copies.