Student hacker suspect charged

The Campus Judicial Board has officially filed charges against the student accused of hacking into IU's Emergency Web site and posting a false emergency alert last month.\nSophomore Benjamin Brodsky is scheduled to have a judicial conference March 1 and is charged with "disorderly conduct which interferes with teaching, research, administration, or other University or University-authorized activity" and "violation of other published University policies or rules," according to a letter Brodsky received from the Judicial Board.\n"I do not even know what those charges mean," Brodsky said. "Neither does anyone who I have read them to, and there are no published regulations which I have violated."\nBrodsky has denied the charge that he has hacked into the Web site and still claims that he was allowed access to the Web site by using his username and password. \n"Since I am a student, I am allowed to go to a University-funded Web site," Brodsky said. "I didn't do anything that I wasn't allowed access to."\nBrodsky said he is now under the advisement of a student advocate after having problems with Student Legal Services.\n"I went over to Student Legal Services about three or four times," Brodsky said. "The first time I asked for help, they said no, and then the second time, they didn't call me back or kept asking me to schedule other appointments, so I decided to just have a student advocate help me." \nThe student advocate is in charge of helping Brodsky understand his rights, explain University policy to him and make sure he is not breaking any of these policies.\nBrodsky plans to call four witnesses at his judicial conference.\n"I do not plan on speaking," Brodsky said. "It's not definite that I won't speak, but I plan on calling as witnesses my roommate, who was there at the time, a friend from home, a character witness and another witness which I haven't decided yet."\nAlthough the charges against Brodsky are of a serious nature, there will be no difference in the way his case is tried as opposed to any other, Dean of Students Richard McKaig said.\n"It is not at all likely that this case will get any special treatment," McKaig said. "That is the way the system is structured. All cases get the same attention."\nThe consequences of his actions will be determined after the hearing.\n"Any student who goes before the Campus Judicial Board, if found responsible for violating University regulations, can be sanctioned anywhere from a reprimand to expulsion," McKaig said. \nBrodsky and his roommate are currently blocked from visiting the Campus Emergency Web site based on the charges filed. \nBrodsky said the fact they took these actions against him and his roommate upset him. \n"It's embarrassing that they even considered doing this to me."\n-- Contact staff writer Mallory Simon at mgsimon@indiana.edu.