Florida Man Charged With Hacking Linux Servers

Donald Austin allegedly stole credentials of Linux employee to hack four company servers and install rootkit and Trojan software.

Dark Reading Staff, Dark Reading

September 21, 2016

1 Min Read
Dark Reading logo in a gray background | Dark Reading

Donald Ryan Austin of South Florida has been arrested on charges of hacking into the networks of Linux Kernel Organization and Linux Foundation and installing malicious software. A US Department of Justice (DoJ) release said Austin, who is a computer programmer, is now out on bail and could face a maximum sentence of 10 years if convicted.

According to the indictment, Austin stole the credentials of an employee to break into the Linux networks and installed rootkit and Trojan software apart from altering the servers. He has been charged with four counts of deliberate damage to a protected computer.

Austin will appear before a magistrate in San Francisco today.

For details, read theĀ DoJ release.

About the Author

Dark Reading Staff

Dark Reading

Dark Reading is a leading cybersecurity media site.

Keep up with the latest cybersecurity threats, newly discovered vulnerabilities, data breach information, and emerging trends. Delivered daily or weekly right to your email inbox.

You May Also Like


More Insights