Edit: doh. Posted this without realizing that you'd made an edit, dobbsbob. Oh well. I think the point is still valid, just not as a response to you :) --- Wh

Edit: doh. Posted this without realizing that you'd made an edit, dobbsbob. Oh well. I think the point is still valid, just not as a response to you :) --- While I tend to agree about overzealous prosecutions when it comes to computer crimes, let's not pretend that there aren't individuals being hurt by some of these crimes. I am a bit fuzzy on the exact nature of the fraud, but I get the impression that it was either small businesses or individuals that were hit. Dealing with fraudulent charges is neither easy nor stress free, even when it is clearly the case that fraud occurred. Sure, most eventually get it resolved, but as someone who has had to navigate those bureaucracies before I know how unpleasant it is. This is not to say that business owners facing high stress and uncertainty about their financial future is sufficient justification for the magnitude of the punishment, but it isn't always just the major corporation that suffers.