Gary McKinnon - Agenda Setters 2009

Name: Gary McKinnon

Title: Accused Nasa hacker

Position: 42    Last year: Not ranked

Why? Putting information security in the spotlight

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• Jim Whitehurst
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• Richard Stallman

Gary McKinnon has become a household name thanks to the backing of The Daily Mail in his battle against extradition to the US.

McKinnon has been fighting extradition to the US since 2003, a year after he was arrested for hacking into computer systems used by the Pentagon and Nasa, where it was alleged he caused $700,000 worth of damage.

Throughout he has maintained he did not cause any damage and that he was simply searching for evidence that aliens exist.

The US has persisted in its attempts to extradite McKinnon, who has been diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome, and has fought legal challenges by the family all the way to the High Court.

The latest development in the case was the Home Office's decision it would be unlawful for the Home Secretary to halt the proceedings, given a High Court decision to allow the extradition in July.

With all the publicity the case has generated, McKinnon has won the backing of both MPs and celebrities in his fight to be tried in the UK. He makes the Agenda Setters list in recognition of his inadvertent role in concentrating minds on lax governmental security and highlighting the complexities of the extradition system.