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Man Gets 4 Months for Defense Dept. Hacking

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From Times Staff and Wire Reports

A computer whiz who insisted he was only trying to warn officials about Web-security flaws when he hacked into Department of Defense computers has been sentenced to four months in federal prison.

Robert Lyttle, 21, of Pleasant Hill was also sentenced Friday to four months’ home confinement after his release.

In addition, he must pay $71,000 in restitution, the amount it cost the government to shore up computer security after his breach.

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Lyttle is not allowed to have a computer at home unless he first gets clearance from the Probation Department.

He is prohibited from accessing the Internet and must keep a log of all computer activities.

Lyttle’s attorney, Tony Serra, said in court that his client is a “computer genius” who was driven by a misguided belief that he was helping the government by exposing vulnerabilities

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