A vindictive computer expert hatched a plot to bring down one of
the UK's national newspaper groups, a court heard last week.
John TroughtonUsing his "super user" status on internal computer systems,
William Culbert threatened to cause mayhem at Associated
Newspapers, which publishes the Daily Mail, the Evening Standard
and the Metro.
Culbert, a 55-year-old former Daily Mail print technician, told
rival publisher Express Newspapers that, for a £600,000 kickback
and tickets to leave the country, he would destroy the Associated
Newspapers.
Southwark Crown Court heard that had Culbert gone ahead with his
revenge he would have caused £13.4m of chaos.
Culbert claimed he would also take-out print centres in the UK,
Spain and the US.
However, Paul Rudd, a production editor at the Express who was
approached by Culbert last November, went straight to Scotland
Yard's Computer Crime Unit to report the intended "industrial
sabotage".
Further conversations were covertly recorded, leading to
Culbert's arrest on 16 December. Subsequently, Associated
Newspapers has stepped up its security.
Culbert admitted two charges of an unauthorised modification of
a computer system, and one charge of gaining unauthorised access to
a computer system - offences that carry a maximum five-year jail
term.
Judge Peter Fingret sentenced the defendant to 18 months
imprisonment.