David Kernell Guilty on Two Counts

UPDATE, November 12, 2010: Palin e-mail hacker sentenced to year in custody

A former University of Tennessee college student who hacked into Sarah Palin's e-mail during the 2008 presidential campaign was sentenced Friday to a year and a day with the judge recommending the term be served in a halfway house, not prison.

Federal Judge Thomas W. Phillips also said David Kernell, who was a 20-year-old economics major when he deduced the answers to security questions and read e-mail in Palin's private account, should get mental health treatment. Court filings said Kernell had suffered from depression since he was 11.

Kernell, who smiled when the sentence was announced, earlier apologized to Palin and her family. He said his mistake will affect him for the rest of his life.

The judge rejected a recommendation from prosecutors, who had argued for 18 months in prison. Prosecutors said outside court that they were satisfied with the sentence.

It will be up to the Bureau of Prisons to decide if Kernell is allowed to serve his term in a halfway house.

Depression.

Give me a break!

Of course Kernell smiled when he heard the sentence.

He wouldn't be smiling about his punishment if it hurt.
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David Kernell, cyber-thug, was found guilty.

From the Washington Post:

A college student who hacked into Sarah Palin's e-mail account and posted some of its contents on the Internet was found guilty Friday.

The jury convicted David Kernell, 22, on two charges: unauthorized access to a computer and obstruction of justice. He was found not guilty of wire fraud, and the jury failed to reach a verdict on identity theft.

Judge Thomas Phillips declared a mistrial on the identity theft charge but did not set a date for sentencing.

Kernell was charged with breaking into Palin's e-mail while she was the Republican vice presidential candidate in 2008.

...The obstruction charge alone carries a prison sentence of up to 20 years; the misdemeanor count is punishable by up to one year in jail.

I don't expect David Kernell to spend any time in jail. I hope I'm wrong.

Video.


Read Sarah Palin's remarks on the case, posted on Facebook.

David Kernell and Sarah Palin

Sarah Palin testified today at David Kernell's hacking trial.
David, son of DEMOCRAT Tennessee state Rep. Mike Kernell, is suspected of being a cybercriminal. He knowingly violated Sarah Palin's privacy. His alleged crime had negative consequences for her entire family.
Bristol Palin, Sarah Palin's daughter, testified on Wednesday, relaying the fall-out from Kernell's actions.

Sarah Palin's daughter testified Wednesday against a former college student charged with breaking into her mother's e-mail account, saying she got anonymous phone calls and hundred of text messages after her cell phone number was posted online.

"There was one that really scared me," Bristol Palin testified in federal court. She said she was concerned when a bunch of boys called, claiming they were at her front door and needed to be let in.

"We live in the middle of nowhere in Alaska ... in the middle of the woods," Palin said.

Palin said her number was included with a photo she snapped of her brother Trigg taking his first bite of solid food and e-mailed to her parents while they were away during the 2008 presidential campaign.

This wasn't a prank. It was an illegal act with far-reaching consequences. Kernell was attempting to influence the presidential election. (He should apply for a job at CBS.)

There is no justification for what cyber-thug Kernell did. None.

Sarah Palin wants Kernell to be given an appropriate punishment for his illegal acts.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Sarah Palin testified Friday against a 22-year-old man accused of hacking into her e-mail account, saying later it's up to the judge to decide whether he should serve prison time if convicted.

Palin testified that the hacking compromised one of the main ways she communicated with her family back in Alaska as she campaigned in 2008 as the Republican vice presidential candidate. Outside the courthouse, when asked whether she thought community service was punishment enough rather than prison, she said, "That's up to the judge."

...Asked outside court if she thought the charges against Kernell were excessive, Palin said, "I don't know, but I do think there should be consequences for bad behavior."

I think Kernell should serve some prison time, but I doubt that he will. A slap on the wrist is an inadequate punishment for this cyber-thug and those of his ilk.
Kernell was ruthless.

The indictment alleges he reset the account's password and read Palin's e-mail, then posted screenshots and the password to a public message board.

...Kernell could face five years in prison and fines up to $250,000 if convicted.

Cybercrime needs to be taken seriously.

The long-term, lingering effects of this sort of breach of privacy must be considered.

If you had your e-mail account hacked and your personal information shared and posted on the Internet, you'd understand how serious this is.

Perhaps Kernell will get the punishment he deserves.

An egregious breach of privacy deserves a hefty sentence.

But once your privacy is violated, it's too late.

Nothing, no sentence, no settlement can undo that damage.

More Charges for David Kernell

Remember David Kernell?

He's the punk who allegedly hacked into Sarah Palin's personal e-mail account.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- A University of Tennessee student charged with hacking into the personal e-mail account of Sarah Palin, the Alaska governor and former Republican vice presidential nominee, pleaded not guilty Monday to three more charges in the case.

A magistrate agreed to push back the trial of David Kernell, the son of a Democratic Tennessee legislator, from May to October.

...The added counts are fraud, unlawful electronic transmission of material outside Tennessee and attempts to conceal records to impede an FBI investigation.

Both the original and the superseding indictments said Kernell tapped into the Alaska governor's widely publicized Yahoo e-mail account, reset the password and was able to read the contents, make screenshots and post his exploits on the Web using the nickname "rubico." The indictment said at least one other person followed a similar path into Palin's account.

What was cyber-thug Kernell thinking last September when he hacked into Sarah Palin's personal e-mail account and then bragged about his exploits online?

He should have known that he couldn't get away with that. He had to know that he left a slimy cyber-trail.

Kernell really screwed up his life.

Not too bright.

David Kernell: INDICTED

UPDATE, November 14, 2008: Student's trial delayed in Palin hacking case
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I will bet when David Kernell allegedly hacked into the personal e-mail account of Gov. Sarah Palin, he never expected to be "shackled and handcufffed."

Well, stuff happens.

From WBIR, Knoxville:

A University of Tennessee student has been indicted for illegally accessing the personal e-mail of vice presidential candidate and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.

It alleges David Kernell, 20, used Yahoo's password recovery tool to gain access to Sarah Palin's e-mail, by answering questions with information available to the public with some research.

David Kernell is set for trial December 16. He has entered a plea of not guilty.

Kernell turned himself in at court Wednesday morning. The indictment was returned Tuesday and unsealed Wednesday.

When he arrived at court, he was shackled and handcufffed.

The conditions for his release contain more than a dozen provisions, including:

--cannot leave the Eastern District of Tennessee without court permission. Kernell's family lives in Memphis.
--cannot possess a computer.
--can access e-mail and can only access internet for class work.
--must not have any contact with Gov. Sarah Palin or her family.

The indictment alleges he reset the account's password and read Palin's e-mail, then posted screenshots and the password to a public message board.

Kernell could face five years in prison and fines up to $250,000 if convicted.

He is the son of Democratic Rep. Mike Kernell of Memphis. Friends have described Kernell as politically interested but not active. No UT student political organization has claimed him as a member.

Here's more, from FOX News:

A Democratic state representative's son has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Tennessee for intentionally hacking into Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's personal e-mail account.

David C. Kernell, 20, was charged with one count of breaking into the Republican vice presidential nominee's personal Yahoo e-mail account. Kernell, an economics student at the University of Tennessee, is the son of state Rep. Michael Kernell of Memphis.

...According to the indictment, Kernell, who used the nicknames "rubico" and "rubico 10" on the Internet, allegedly reset Palin's e-mail password to "popcorn" using Yahoo's password-recovery tool on Sept. 16 by "researching and correctly answering a series of personal security questions."

After changing the password, the indictment alleges he made screenshots of her e-mail directory, e-mail messages and other personal information before posting them to a public Web site. He also posted the reset password.

Kernell was able to obtain the personal e-mail addresses of Palin's family members, pictures of her family, her birth date and at least one family member's cell phone number. He also had access to her address book.

The indictment alleges that after posting Palin's personal information online, Kernell "removed, altered, concealed and covered up files on his laptop computer" to throw off a possible investigation.

Investigators were able to track Kernell down by tracing the hack to his Knoxville apartment through an Internet proxy site.

The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee and investigated by the FBI's Anchorage and Knoxville field offices.

How are those conditions of release going to be enforced?

Who is going to make sure Kernell doesn't possess a computer?

Who is going to monitor that Kernell is not going beyond his e-mail and only accessing the Internet for class work?

Judge C. Clifford Shirley restricted Kernell from discussing the case with any potential witnesses, which include his roommates.

Kernell was also restricted from having any contact directly or indirectly with the Alaska governor or her family.

Shirley warned that if Kernell violated any part of his release conditions, he would be held until the trial.

Supposedly, if Kernell violates any of the conditions, he'll be jailed until trial.

If I were to guess, I think he will violate the conditions and he'll lie about it. He's shown he will lie and cannot be trusted.

Will the FBI be monitoring his Internet use?

Will the FBI be reading his e-mail to make sure that he isn't communicating with his roommates or other potential witnesses?

There has to be some monitoring or there's no way to assure that Kernell isn't in violation of the release conditions.

What does it mean that Kernell is restricted from having any direct or indirect contact with Gov. Palin and her family?

Does that mean he can't watch Palin on the news?

Does watching Tina Fey on SNL count as indirect contact with Palin?

While my sympathies are first and foremost with Sarah Palin and every person whose privacy was violated as a result of her e-mail account being hacked, I do feel sorry for Kernell's family. That's assuming Kernell's father, DEMOCRAT Tennessee state lawmaker Mike Kernell, and his mother don't approve of their son's alleged crimes.

I hope David Kernell's parents aren't just disturbed that he got caught. I hope they're disturbed that their son allegedly invaded the privacy of the Republican nominee for president of the United States.

David Kernell not only allegedly victimized Sarah Palin and everyone linked to her e-mail account; he also has done tremendous harm to his parents.
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Read the indictment.
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NEWS RELEASE:

WASHINGTON, Oct. 8 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- David C. Kernell, 20, was
indicted by a federal grand jury in Knoxville, Tenn., for intentionallym accessing without authorization the e-mail account of Alaska governor Sarah Palin, Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew Friedrich of the Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney James R. Dedrick for the Eastern District of Tennessee announced today. Kernell turned himself into federal authorities for arrest and will be arraigned today before U.S. Magistrate Judge C. Clifford Shirley.

The single count indictment, returned on Oct. 7, 2008, and unsealed today, alleges that on approximately Sept. 16, 2008, Kernell, a resident of Knoxville, obtained unauthorized access to Gov. Palin's personal e-mail account by allegedly resetting the account password. According to the indictment, after answering a series of security questions that allowed him to reset the password and gain access to the e-mail account, Kernell allegedly read the contents of the account and made screenshots of the e-mail directory, e-mail content and other personal information. According to the indictment, Kernell posted screenshots of the e-mails and other
personal information to a public Web site. Kernell also allegedly posted the new e-mail account password that he had created, thus providing access to the account by others.

If convicted of the charge, the defendant faces a maximum of five years in prison, a $250,000 fine and a three year term of supervised release. A trial date has not been set.

The case is being prosecuted by Section Chief Michael DuBose and Trial Attorney Mark Krotoski of the Criminal Division's Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Greg Weddle of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee. The case is being investigated by the FBI's Anchorage and Knoxville field offices.

An indictment is merely an allegation. Defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty in a court of law.


SOURCE U.S. Department of Justice

David Kernell, Mike Kernell, and Gabriel Ramuglia

UPDATE, November 14, 2008: Student's trial delayed in Palin hacking case
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UPDATE, October 8, 2008: Alleged Palin e-mail hacker goes to trial in December
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David Kernell, economics major at the University of Tennessee, and his family are going through a difficult period.

I can understand that. Being the subject of an investigation by the FBI can't be a lot of fun.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The FBI searched the residence of the son of a Democratic state lawmaker in Tennessee over the weekend looking for evidence linking the young man to the hacking of Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin's personal e-mail account, two law enforcement officials told The Associated Press on Monday.

David Kernell, 20, has not returned repeated phone calls or e-mails from the AP since last week. His lawyer said Monday the family is going through a difficult period.

"The Kernell family wants to do the right thing, and they want what is best for their son," said attorney Wade V. Davies of Knoxville. "We are confident that the truth will emerge as we go through the process. David is a decent and intelligent young man, and I look forward to assisting him during this difficult period."

Kernell is the son of state Rep. Mike Kernell, a Memphis Democrat and chairman of Tennessee's House Government Operations Committee. The father declined last week to discuss the possibility his son might be involved in the case.

"I had nothing to do with it, I had no knowledge or anything," Mike Kernell told the AP last week.

"I was not a party to anything of this nature at all," he added. "I wasn't in on this — and I wouldn't know how to do anything like that."

No one answered the door at Mike Kernell's home in Memphis on Monday, and he did not return repeated phone calls Monday from the AP.

...A hacker last week broke into one of the Yahoo Inc. e-mail accounts that Palin uses, revealing as evidence a few inconsequential personal messages she has received since John McCain selected her as his running mate.

...During the break-in, the hacker used an Internet address that traced to David Kernell's apartment complex in Knoxville. The FBI obtained logs Saturday establishing the connection from Gabriel Ramuglia of Athens, Ga., who operates an Internet anonymity service used by the hacker.

Ramuglia told the AP the FBI asked him to confirm the address appeared in his records, and it did. Ramuglia said his logs showed the hacker visiting Yahoo's mail service, resetting Palin's password and announcing results of the break-in on a Web site where the hacking was first disclosed.

"I think he just didn't realize the severity of what he was doing until afterwards," Ramuglia said.

Technology is a wonderful thing.

This is damning evidence. The Internet address locates the hacker at David Kernell's apartment complex. It's kind of like technological DNA, strong evidence.

Once again, the supposed anonymity of the Internet crumbles. When will people learn that what they do online leaves a trail?

Perhaps the hacker believed he was safe because he was using Ramuglia's anonymity service. That was a serious error in judgment.

Ramuglia was smart to cooperate with the FBI. I'm sure he's not in the business of providing safe haven for people interested in committing crimes, or at least he realizes it wouldn't be in his own best interest to withhold evidence in a federal investigation.

Ramuglia is quoted as saying that he thinks the hacker didn't get the severity of his actions until afterwards.

I disagree with Ramuglia's assessment. A 20-year-old computer savvy college student gets it.

What 20-year-old thinks he can hack into the personal e-mail account of the Republican vice presidential candidate and then brag about his exploits online without realizing that what he's done is serious stuff?

No, I don't buy that excuse. I don't buy the "I'm young and naive" defense. Kernell and those of his ilk get it. I think they just have an air of invincibility and an arrogance about them. They think they're smarter than everyone else. They overestimate their abilities.

This AP report includes some interesting information on David Kernell's father, Tennesse lawmaker Mike Kernell, 56.

Kernell has a straight-laced reputation among his colleagues.

"Mike Kernell is your quintessential Boy Scout," said state Rep. John Deberry, another Democrat. "Mike follows the rules. He will almost get on your nerve as far as making sure things are done by the book."

"If Mike had known anything about this, he would have had a fit on his son," Deberry said. "When I saw his reaction when he first heard about it, the absolute fear and shock that was on his face, I realized then he had absolutely nothing to do with it."

Was the reaction on his face an indication that he had absolutely nothing to do with it, or was it the reaction of fear and shock that his son's alleged illegal activities had been discovered?

I don't know Mike Kernell. I'm willing to believe that he really didn't know what his son was allegedly doing. Still, the fact that he's a Dem elected official does raise questions as to what he knew and when he knew it, legitimate questions. That needs to be investigated as well.

Even if Mike Kernell had no knowledge of his son's alleged hacking, it casts a pall on him. That's not fair. His son is a big boy and Mike Kernell can't be held responsible for the actions of his adult son, if it's true that Mike Kernell had no involvement.

Experts said the hacker apparently left an easy trail for investigators.

"He might as well have taken a picture of his house and uploaded it," said Ken Pfeil, an Internet security expert. "He should have just set up a big beacon that said, 'Here's my house,' or confessed. If they can't catch this guy based on all the information posted on the Web then all bets are off."

Not too bright. I think the hacker probably put a lot of faith in Ramuglia's service. That was a mistake to think it gave him cover.

I assume that Ramuglia has stated policies outlining that he will cooperate with law enforcement in criminal investigations.

Maybe the hacker didn't read the fine print.

In the end, I hope justice is done.

The criminal needs to be held accountable for the violation of Sarah Palin's privacy.

This really is no different from breaking into her home or office and pawing through Gov. Palin's personal correspondence, hoping to find something to derail her candidacy.

It was no game.

Unfortunately, there's no end in sight to assaults that are being waged on Sarah Palin. The Dems know that she poses a threat. It's war.

The FBI "Broke" into David Kernell's Apartment

UPDATE, November 14, 2008: Student's trial delayed in Palin hacking case
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UPDATE, October 8, 2008: Alleged Palin e-mail hacker goes to trial in December
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A column by Mike Butcher is VERY sympathetic to David Kernell, a target of the investigation into the hacking of Sarah Palin's personal e-mail account. His column appears on the Washington Post website.

The headline: "Palingate? - Agents Swoop On A Tennessee College Dorm Linked To Palin Hacker's IP Address"

Butcher writes:

Hack into - and then publish - the email account of a major politician, especially one under Secret Service protection and currently running for Vice President, and you had better cover your tracks. Well. WBIR is among those reporting that FBI agents broke into a party at the Fort Sanders apartment of University of Tennessee student David Kernell early Sunday morning. A Department of Justice spokesperson confirmed there has been "investigatory activity" in Knoxville regarding the incident where Sarah Palin's Yahoo account was hacked and information published online.

According to a witness, several agents arrived at The Commons of Knoxville apartment block around midnight, took down the names of everyone at the party and then spent the next 1.5 to 2 hours taking pictures of everything inside the apartment. So far it looks like there are no publicly available search warrants, and no charges have been filed. Give it time. Witnesses say Kernell and his friends fled the apartment while his three roommates were subpoenaed.

The FBI "broke" into David Kernell's apartment?

According to WBIR, in Knoxville:

A person who identified himself as a witness tells 10 News that agents with the FBI served a federal search warrant at the Fort Sanders residence of David Kernell early Sunday morning. Kernell lives in the Commons apartment complex at 1115 Highland Ave.

...A separate law enforcement source confirmed to 10 News that a search warrant was served on Kernell's apartment.

Since when is serving a federal search warrant akin to breaking into someone's residence?

It's not. It's part of an investigation into a federal crime.

The way the lib media and Barack Obama supporters are reacting to the hacking of Palin's personal e-mail account is so outrageous. It's an embarrassment.

They're unabashed apologists for criminal activity.

Rather than being outraged about the invasion of Palin's privacy, Butcher is warning hackers to "cover your tracks." He complains about Kernell's privacy being invaded when he is served a warrant.

Nice touch.

Keep in mind, Kernell is being investigated by the FBI in connection to a FEDERAL CRIME.

There's nothing criminal about that.
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More, from FOX News.

FBI Serves Search Warrant against David Kernell

UPDATE, November 14, 2008: Student's trial delayed in Palin hacking case
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UPDATE, October 8, 2008: Alleged Palin e-mail hacker goes to trial in December
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I'm guessing that David Kernell and his father Tennessee DEMOCRAT State Rep. Mike Kernell aren't enjoying the weekend.

Being under investigation by the FBI for the hacking of Sarah Palin's personal e-mail account has to be at least a little bit stressful.

Gateway Pundit is on top of the story.

From WBIR in Knoxville:

The FBI is stepping up its investigation into the possibility that a University of Tennessee student hacked into the personal e-mail of Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin.

A person who identified himself as a witness tells 10 News that agents with the FBI served a federal search warrant at the Fort Sanders residence of David Kernell early Sunday morning. Kernell lives in the Commons apartment complex at 1115 Highland Ave.

David Kernell is the son of Mike Kernell, a Democratic state representative from Memphis.

A Department of Justice spokesperson confirmed there has been "investigatory activity" in Knoxville regarding the Palin case, but she said there are no publicly available search warrants, and no charges have been filed.

A separate law enforcement source confirmed to 10 News that a search warrant was served on Kernell's apartment.

According to the witness, several agents arrived at The Commons of Knoxville around midnight.

They presented their badges upon entering Kernell's apartment, where several students were having a party, and took down their names.

The witness tells us they asked him and those who did not live in the unit to go outside. He believes the investigators took about 1.5 to 2 hours taking pictures of everything inside the apartment.

He says Kernell's three roommates were also subpoenaed, and must testify this week in Chattanooga.

That party didn't actually come off as planned.

Nothing spoils a party like the FBI coming in to search the place.

David Kernell describes himself as an "Obamacrat."

Will he also have to refer to himself as a felon?

Mamas, don't let your babies grow up to be hackers.

David Kernell

UPDATE, November 12, 2010: Palin e-mail hacker sentenced to year in custody

A former University of Tennessee college student who hacked into Sarah Palin's e-mail during the 2008 presidential campaign was sentenced Friday to a year and a day with the judge recommending the term be served in a halfway house, not prison.

Federal Judge Thomas W. Phillips also said David Kernell, who was a 20-year-old economics major when he deduced the answers to security questions and read e-mail in Palin's private account, should get mental health treatment. Court filings said Kernell had suffered from depression since he was 11.

Kernell, who smiled when the sentence was announced, earlier apologized to Palin and her family. He said his mistake will affect him for the rest of his life.

The judge rejected a recommendation from prosecutors, who had argued for 18 months in prison. Prosecutors said outside court that they were satisfied with the sentence.

It will be up to the Bureau of Prisons to decide if Kernell is allowed to serve his term in a halfway house.

Depression.

Give me a break!

Of course Kernell smiled when he heard the sentence.

He wouldn't be smiling about his punishment if it hurt.
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UPDATE, November 14, 2008: Student's trial delayed in Palin hacking case
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UPDATE, October 8, 2008: Alleged Palin e-mail hacker goes to trial in December
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UPDATE, September 21, 2008: FBI serves search warrant against UT student in Palin case
(h/t Gateway Pundit)
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UPDATE, September 19, 2008: Hacker wanted to 'derail' Palin

A person taking credit for hacking into Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's personal Yahoo account claims to have read the Republican vice-presidential candidate's e-mails to find something that "would derail her campaign" after using publicly available biographical data to reset her password, according to a posting on the Internet.

"There was nothing there, nothing incriminating — all I saw was personal stuff, some clerical stuff from when she was governor," the person wrote in a message on 4chan.org that was later erased, according to Wired.com, which copied the account on its Web site.

The hacker, who uses the screen name "Rubico" and used the e-mail account "rubico10@yahoo.com," read about Mrs. Palin's use of a Yahoo e-mail account in news reports and spent about 45 minutes on Google and Wikipedia tracking down answers to security questions, such as where she met her spouse, her birthdate and ZIP code, the hacker said. The person then changed Mrs. Palin's password to "popcorn."

Several conservative blogs, adding up circumstantial evidence, turned their focus Thursday on David Kernell, the son of a Democratic state lawmaker and a college student at the University of Tennessee.

But Tennessee state Rep. Mike Kernell, Memphis Democrat, last night disputed published newspaper reports, including one in the Tennessean that said his son was the focus of the Palin hack investigation.

"I talked to David today and he has not been contacted, not a target by any federal group, any investigation," Mr. Kernell told The Washington Times on Thursday night. He was answering phones at his office late into the evening to clear up inaccurate media reports, he said.

When asked whether his son is involved in the case in any way, Mr. Kernell said: "I can't talk about my son. I can just tell you no one has contacted him or I about this."

The hacker is not David Kernell.

Oh... Wait. It is.

Son Of Memphis Democratic Rep. Admits He's The Palin Hacker

Democratic Rep. Mike Kernell of Tennessee unveiled the hacker who broke into Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin's e-mail—his 20-year-old son, David Kernell.

After a flurry of Internet discussions naming his son as the culprit, Rep. Kernell confirmed that his son was behind the infiltration, according to The Tennesseean. The paper said Kernell talked to his son Thursday.

"The person they're talking about is my son," said Kernell. "But we know of no investigation. I have not been contacted. He has not been contacted," Kernell told a Memphis TV station.

The FBI and Secret Service have not confirmed that David Kernell is a suspect. However, the TV station said the FBI in Anchorage, Alaska, has contacted the Memphis FBI bureau in the investigation.

...On the Internet 4chan forum David Kernell, using the pseudonym Rubico, detailed how easy it was to gain access to Palin's e-mail.

"After the password recovery was re-enabled, it took seriously 45 mins on wikipedia and google to find the info, Birthday? 15 seconds on wikipedia, zip code? well she had always been from wasilla, and it only has 2 zip codes (thanks online postal service!)," Rubico wrote.

"The second was somewhat harder, the question was "where did you meet your spouse?" did some research, and apparently she had eloped with mister palin after college, if youll look on some of the screensh*ts that I took and other fellow anon have so graciously put on photobucket you will see the google (NSDQ:GOOG) search for "palin eloped" or some such in one of the tabs.

"I found out later though more research that they met at high school, so I did variations of that, high, high school, eventually hit on "Wasilla high" I promptly changed the password to popcorn and took a cold shower."

The cold shower must've woken Kernell up. He said he later realized the seriousness of what he did.

"It finally set in, THIS internet was serious business, yes I was behind a proxy, only one, if this sh*t ever got to the FBI I was f—ed, I panicked, i still wanted the stuff out there but I didn't know how to rapid [share] all that stuff, so I posted the pass on /b/, and then promptly deleted everything, and unplugged my internet and just sat there in a comatose state."

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Michelle Malkin has "The story behind the Palin e-mail hacking."

More from Malkin:

Computerworld gives credit to this blog for telling the story behind the e-mail hacking, and reports that the Web proxy firm Ctunnel is now working with the feds, as owner Gabriel Ramuglia had promised he would do if asked.

Ctunnel's owner Gabriel Ramuglia has put the Associated Press to shame.

The AP refused to cooperate with the investigation.

What does that say about the AP's objectivity and journalistic integrity?

(Michelle Malkin)

Tennessee DEMOCRAT State Rep. Mike Kernell became nationally known this afternoon. He can thank his son, David.
Gateway Pundit has assembled a lot of information on David Kernell.

Kernell's may be the face of the DEMOCRATS' culture of corruption.

I love the Associated Press coverage of the hacker.

AP would not cooperate with the federal investigation, and now it must ruefully report the bad news that the case was cracked.

Keep grinding that axe, AP.
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More.

It looks like Sarah Palin wasn’t the only target of an online hacker. Law enforcement officials are investigating claims that the private e-mail accounts of the Republican vice presidential candidate’s family and staff were also compromised.

“Yesterday, the Department received a referral alleging that the personal e-mail accounts of Gov. Sarah Palin, her staff, and her family had been unlawfully hacked. The Department is reviewing the matter,” Justice Department spokeswoman Laura Sweeney said on Thursday.

...[Gabriel] Ramuglia said the FBI told him they also reached out to Yahoo! to ask for help. The hope is that information from Yahoo! can be matched with something in the proxy site’s logs, identifying the hacker. The logs from both Ctunnel.com and Yahoo! should be delivered to the FBI by Friday, Ramuglia said.

“As long as they didn’t use a second proxy, I should be able to find them,” Ramuglia said. “I don’t think they were careful enough to do that.”

Meanwhile, there is widespread speculation about who was behind the attack and what the motivation was.

Jose Nazario, a senior security engineer with Arbor Networks Inc., said he knows “through personal contacts” that members of the group Anonymous were involved in the Palin e-mail attack.

He said Anonymous is a loose network of a few dozen people who live in the United States and abroad and range from teenagers to 30-year-olds who share what he said is a “sociopathic sense of humor.”

“Anonymous sort of takes pride in doing this publicly and pissing people off. There are other groups that do this, but they aren’t as public about it,” Nazario said.

Gateway Pundit, continuing to gather information on the story, writes:

FBI officials in Alaska confirmed they are in contact with their Memphis office regarding the Palin hacker attack.

The son of Tennessee Democratic State Representative Mike Kernell is targeted.

Gateway Pundit posts this video from WREG-TV and a transcript excerpt.



In addition, Gateway Pundit makes this important point:

The Associated Press, who said Palin deserved it, also started a FALSE RUMOR that Governor Palin was using her personal account for official state business. This is not true. This is an inaccurate statement by the Associated Press.

And this:

There is a connection between David Kernell and David Plouffe--- Barack Obama's Campaign Manager!

From a commenter at Terry Frank (who has screengrabs of David Kernell's Facebook page):

There is an apparent connection between David Kernell and David Plouffe. If you do a Technorati search for “david kernell” (http://www.technorati.com/search/%22david+kernell%22?authority=a4&language=en) and then click on Videos about David Kernell, the first video you see if of David Plouffe (Campaign manager for Obaman). He probably did the video for Plouffe.

This is not a casual connection.

Palin Account Hacked, AP Did Not Comply

UPDATE, October 8, 2008: Alleged Palin e-mail hacker goes to trial in December
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UPDATE, September 18, 2008: David Kernell
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From FOX News:

The FBI and Secret Service have launched a joint investigation into the apparent hacking of Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin’s private e-mail account after a widely-read Web site published screen grabs from it on Wednesday.

The article posted on Gawker.com revealed snapshots of e-mail exchanges the Alaska governor had with colleagues as well as private family photos. The gossip site says the email account has since been shut down.

Rick Davis, campaign manager for John McCain, released a statement Wednesday calling the publication a “shocking invasion of the governor’s privacy and a violation of law.”

“The matter has been turned over to the appropriate authorities and we hope that anyone in possession of these e-mails will destroy them. We will have no further comment,” Davis said.

An FBI spokesman in Alaska later confirmed, “We are going to be working a joint investigation with Secret Service on this.”

The Secret Service contacted The Associated Press and asked for copies of the leaked e-mails, which circulated widely on the Internet. The AP did not comply.

Why would the AP not comply?

Why would the AP keep copies of stolen e-mails from the Secret Service?

The e-mails were obtained illegally.

The AP coverage of the hacking does not acknowledge that Sarah Palin was a victim.

To the contrary, the incident is being used to slam her -- again.

The Washington Post takes the same stance.

The episode focuses attention on Palin's use of her personal e-mail account as lawmakers in Alaska look into whether she fired the state's public safety commissioner, Walter Monegan, because he refused to take action against her brother-in-law, a state trooper at the time.

Palin has been criticized in recent days for using a personal e-mail account to conduct state business.

No.

The episode focuses attention on how Palin is under assault.

Why don't Michael D. Shear and Karl Vick acknowledge that KARL VICK wrote the column criticizing Palin for using a personal e-mail account?

They're not being as transparent as they should be.

...An Alaska activist has filed a Freedom of Information Act request seeking disclosure of e-mails from another Yahoo account Palin used, gov.sarah@yahoo.com.

That account appears to have been linked to the one that was hacked.

Both accounts appear to have been deactivated. E-mails sent to them yesterday were returned as undeliverable.

This Alaska activist is one of Palin's political enemies.

It's not OK for the lib media to completely dismiss the crime of hacking into Palin's personal e-mail account and plastering personal information on the Internet.

That's not being mentioned.

The lib media are excusing the violation of her privacy by ignoring it.

The issue of Palin conducting government business from a personal account is a separate one.

Palin and her family have been victimized here.

Where's the reporting on that?

It's as if the libs think they're entitled to the stolen information.

They aren't entitled to commit a crime. The AP is acting like an accomplice.

I didn't realize when Barack Obama promised to get tough and sharper in his attacks that meant breaking the law.

Sarah Palin's E-Mail Account Hacked

UPDATE, October 8, 2008: Alleged Palin e-mail hacker goes to trial in December
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UPDATE, September 18, 2008: David Kernell
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I am outraged.

Sarah Palin's personal e-mail account was hacked.

The slimy Gawker.com has posted screen shots of her account, e-mails, family photos, and her contact list, meaning dozens of other personal e-mail addresses have been published.

From FOX News:

In the latest of a series of invasions into Sarah Palin’s personal life, hackers have broken into the Republican vice presidential candidate’s private e-mail account, and a widely read Web site has published screen grabs from it.

An article Wednesday in Gawker.com posts family photos and snapshots of e-mail exchanges the Alaska governor had with colleagues. Gawker says the-email account has since been shut down, but it will leave the images up on its site for all to see.

“Here are the screenshots of the emails saved before the account went dark, along with the contact list. It’s newsworthy and we will not be taking it down!” the site declares.

Rick Davis, campaign manager for John McCain, released a statement calling the publication a “shocking invasion of the governor’s privacy and a violation of law.”

“The matter has been turned over to the appropriate authorities and we hope that anyone in possession of these e-mails will destroy them. We will have no further comment,” Davis said.

The article boasts about the lengths to which the reporter went to verify the account, saying he or she even called a phone number listed for Palin’s teenage daughter, Bristol, which apparently went to her voicemail. The site also listed dozens of contact e-mails from the account.

Both WIRED and Gawker reported that members claiming to be with a group known as Anonymous took credit for hacking into Palin’s account. Screen grabs were published on other Web sites and then deleted, Gawker reported.

They reportedly came from a Yahoo e-mail account Palin uses — one separate from another private account that was publicized in The Washington Post last week.

Gawker complained that Palin has since “deleted” the account, and suggested she was trying to “destroy evidence.”

This makes me nauseous. I know what this is like. I could cry. I feel so awful for Gov. Palin.

It brings back how violated I felt when I was the victim of an attack on the Internet by someone and his accomplices. They didn't like me based on our contact on a discussion board.

One of the accomplices was a moderator of the discussion board, hosted by a giant media conglomerate. This moderator was in a paid position.

I was threatened and stalked on the Internet. My family was threatened. Yes, he threatened my children.

As a result of the moderator's egregious violation of my privacy and his disregard of the stated privacy policy of the board regarding giving personal identifiable information to third parties, I fought back and won.

That's right. I WON. I have the documents to prove it.

But once your privacy is violated, it's hard to say that you won. Nothing, no settlement can undo that damage.

People who do this sort of thing are without conscience. They are soulless. The hackers are criminals.

This is the final straw when it comes to the abuse that Sarah Palin and her family have suffered.

I really can't stand it anymore.

Barack Obama's people will stop at nothing to destroy her. I'm sure the criminals aren't on Obama's campaign payroll, but they are his people.

They are scum.

They are evil.
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I'm not going to link to Gawker, but the comments there are disgusting.

Examples:

flossy at 01:17 PM

On the one hand, wow. Awesome. On the other hand... this won't do much to dissuade her supporters of the persecution complex they've developed of late, now will it?

PERSECUTION COMPLEX???

(Gee, where have I heard that before?)

SARAH PALIN IS BEING PERSECUTED.

Dr.Montlopez at 01:22 PM

So tempted to enact spam anarchy on this list. . . .

What scum!

The Merovingian Bride at 01:27 PM

I just hope Todd's personal email doesn't get hacked because if it does then I'm screwed (and so is Todd).

Sick!

NefariousNewt at 01:31 PM

@StonedAndDethroned: Everything about McCain and Palin feels dirty... you get used to it after a while.

NO. THIS IS DIRTY. THESE PEOPLE ARE DIRTY.
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Related links:

Hackers break into Sarah Palin's e-mail account

Sarah Palin's Personal Email Hacked

DAY'S END ROUNDUP

Palin’s E-Mail Account Hacked

If this happened to Barack Obama or Joe Biden, it would be front page stuff.

The New York Times apparently thinks hacking into Palin's account isn't all that newsworthy. Same goes for the Washington Post. They're burying it. Disgusting.