Andrew Auernheimer, the man accused of sneaking into AT&T’s website and finding a back door to personal data of its thousands of 3G iPad customers, has managed to foot the $50,000 bail levied against him.
Auernheimer faces charges for hacking into the carrier’s private website to find e-mail addresses and other personal info of customers who had signed up for iPad 3G service. It happened not long after the release of the iPad.
Auernheimer, who was booked along with fellow hacker Daniel Spitler, was charged with fraud and conspiracy. The data contained some pretty noteworthy people, including actors and politicians, like New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg.
The story garnered a lot of headlines not only because of the obvious security issue but also because it was during a time when the country was still wide-eyed over the new tablet from Apple. People gobbled up stories about the iPad, and this headline became an Internet sensation.
It also shed a light on AT&T, which came under fire for not doing a better job to protect personal information of its customers. The carrier came forward to say it would do a better job to ensure everyone’s safety and security in the future.
Auernheimer still awaits a court date, where he will find out whether or not he has to serve any hard time.
