Ohio computer hacker pleads guilty to stealing data
An Ohio man could face a prison term and court-ordered restitution for his admission in court that he looted an Arkansas-based company's computer system of customer information.
Daniel J. Baas, 25, of Milford, pleaded guilty Thursday in U.S. District Court and was ordered to be kept in jail without bond until he is sentenced in about two months.
In an agreement with federal prosecutors, Baas admitted that he stole the data between January 2001 and January 2003 from Acxiom Corp. and stored the information on computer disks at his home.
Baas didn't share the proprietary information with anyone, although he indicated to others that he had it, prosecutors said. The data contained personal identification information, investigators said.
"He was a person who liked to retain data on people," said Robert Behlen Jr., an assistant prosecutor.
Baas was motivated by curiosity to steal about 300 computer passwords and the data files from Acxiom, but that doesn't excuse him under the law that forbids unauthorized access to computers, defense lawyer Timothy Smith said.
Baas pleaded guilty to a charge of exceeding authorized access to a protected computer and obtaining information. U.S. District Judge Susan Dlott accepted the plea.
