NK man faces computer-hacking charges
Michael Ray "Hairball" Wally, 21, of North Kensington, Pennsylvania, has been charged with 42 counts of identity theft and 247 counts of using a computer in a crime. Mr. Wally allegedly stole over 2,000 credit card numbers from the computers of a number of businesses and posted them on his website, HBX Networks, for use by others; police report that some of the cards were used for fraudulent purchases. The website claims HBX is a non-profit organization that documents flaws in computer networks, and gives details of how Mr. Wally used "war-dialing," or making educated guesses about phone numbers, to access the networks and steal the credit card data. Police executed a search warrant at HBX offices on May 14, 2004, and seized fifteen computers. Mr. Wally's preliminary hearing is scheduled for September 9, 2004.