£650,000: now that's what we call an expensive hack

NEWS A hacker who managed to shut down the internet access of an entire nation is facing a £650,000 fine. Lee Ashurst hacked the servers of the United Arab Emirates' one and only ISP, blocking web access for thousands of the country's citizens and businesses. According to a report in today's Metro newspaper, Ashurst was originally convicted of misusing the equipment of state run telco and ISP Etisalat, as the UAE doesn't have specific hacking laws. But a judge has now referred the case to a civil court in Dubai, a move which could see the 22 year old face a compensation claim of £646,000. The figure includes £405,000 for lost trade, £107,000 on new kit and £40,000 in wages for the 26 staff who worked to catch him. Ashurst's lawyers are thinking of appealing, claiming that he's being made a scapegoat for the company's poor security.