Congressional Aide Hires Fake Hackers To Improve Apparently Well-Deserved Low GPA

Stupidity

from the you've-got-to-be-kidding-me dept

The communications aide for Montana’s lone Representative had what he thought was a brilliant idea: he’d hire a hacker to break into the network at his alma mater (Texas Christian University), and boost his GPA. To set the wheels in motion, 28-year-old Todd Shriber wrote to the security website Attrition.org in the hopes they could commit the dirty deed — or find someone who could. Unfortunately for Shriber, the folks at Attrition strung him along for weeks pretending to plan the network assault, while going so far as to make Shriber engage in inane tasks such as photographing local squirrels and pigeons. Attrition has posted the entire e-mail conversation to their website (via Slashdot) — the last dramatic e-mail from Attrition pretending they had been busted in the attempt and police were on their trail, likely scaring Shriber stupid(er). When contacted by a reporter Shriber denied, then ultimately admitted the whole painfully idiotic affair, though he digs a deeper hole by discussing the plan at length — pretending he was getting cold feet (though the e-mail thread shows no hesitation). Given our political leaders’ level of technological accumen, it seems like young Todd is well prepared for a future in politics.