Do you think you don't need a password or other security measures for your home WiFi network? You will definitely think again after hearing the tale of Barry Ardolf. The 46 year old Brooklyn Park, Minnesota resident was sentenced on Tuesday to 18 years in jail after he hacked into his neighbor's WiFi network and then used the network to try to frame them for various criminal acts.
The Wired web site reports that Ardolf got upset with Matt and Bethany Kostolnik, his next door neighbors. In 2009 the couple called the police and accused him of kissing their four year old son on the lips. Ardolf pretty much went nuts after that accusation and decided to hack into the Kostolnik's home WiFi network. He then used the connection and created a fake MySpace page for Matt Kostolnik which contained images of child pornography. Ardolf also sent "flirtatious e-mail to women in Mr. Kostolnik's office" via the Kostolniks' WiFi connection and even sent threatening email to Vice President Joe Biden. That email got the attention of the Secret Service and other law enforcement officials
Matt Kostolnik's law firm decided to look into the matter after Kostolnik pleaded his innocence and set up a "packet sniffer" to find out where the hacking was coming from. The firm found digital evidence of Ardolf's involvement. The FBI then got a search warrant of Ardolf's house and found tons of physical evidence including hacking manuals, hand written notes, and the child pornography image that Ardolf uploaded to the fake MySpace page.
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