Also "Not long after that, I secretly gained access to his forum" seems like a CFAA violation. Though law enforcement may not care to prosecute, I don't see how

Also "Not long after that, I secretly gained access to his forum" seems like a CFAA violation. Though law enforcement may not care to prosecute, I don't see how it's different from "I secretly gained access to an internal AT&T forum" which would likely see an average citizen facing years in prison.