29-Dec-2010 11:47

Could email prying lead to a 5 year jail sentence?

If you've ever had the urge to check someone else's e-mail, then you've got something in common with Leon Walker, a 33-year-old computer technician from Rochester Hills, Michigan.

But be warned, it may lead to prison time.

Walker suspected his wife of cheating, so he flipped through the book of passwords she conveniently kept next to the family's shared laptop, logged into her Gmail account and confirmed his suspicions.

Now Oakland County prosecutors are charging him with felony computer misuse - usually reserved for identity thieves, hackers and trade secret embezzlers. He faces five years in prison.
Prosecutor Jessica Cooper believes Walker's credentials as a trained computer technician make him a threat. "The guy is a hacker. [The computer] was password protected; he had wonderful skills, and was highly trained. Then he downloaded them and used them in a very contentious way."

The trial starts February 7, 2011.

Though most would agree that reading someone else's email -- whether in a relationship or on a shared computer or not -- is a big no-no, the charges themselves will be difficult to prove, especially since the statute is aimed toward hackers, not Gmail Peeping Toms.

(With thanks to Brendon Slattery)