“Hacking back” is rooting an attacker when an attacker is actively within your systems. It’s not owning an ex-employee’s personal accounts to rummage around in

“Hacking back” is rooting an attacker when an attacker is actively within your systems. It’s not owning an ex-employee’s personal accounts to rummage around in their files to “protect valuable IP.” Of course that’s illegal, and for good reason. Can you imagine a world where executives were permitted to hack anyone they like based upon mere suspicion? I am skeptical that someone with this professed level of technical sophistication didn’t know this was illegal while doing it. Overall I am skeptical of prison sentences for CFAA violations, but this one comes awfully close to being justified. Certainly the conviction was.