Student in court for 'hacking Facebook'
By Paul Smithson
22/08/2011
A 25-year-old student is facing five charges at Westminster Magistrates' Court following alleged attempts to hack Facebook.
Glenn Steven Mangham, from York, used "considerable technical expertise" to "penetrate" the social network and was arrested in June, appearing in court for the first time last week, the Telegraph reported the prosecution as saying.
The young computer expert will not be allowed to use any computers or mobile devices with web-connectivity while the case is running.
Judge Evans said: "The court feels it will be safer if there was no access to the internet which will reduce the temptation for your son to go on Facebook."
Facebook claimed its users' personal data was not compromised by the attack, but a spokesperson said it is taking the situation "extremely seriously", as its internal systems had been involved.
Police sources told the publication that it is one of the first investigations to be carried out in the UK regarding the hacking of the worldwide social media platform.
The Guardian pointed out that it is not clear which information Mangham is accused of accessing, only the programs he is alleged to have used and the extent to which this contravenes the 1990 Computer Misuse Act.
It also noted that his activity is not believed to be connected to the work of major hacking groups such as LulzSec and Anonymous.
Mr Mangham will return for his committal hearing on September 28th.
