A disgruntled former employee e-mailed a virus into a company's computer system in an attempt to get back at it, a court heard yesterday.
Paul O'Connor (28), Pearse Street, Dublin, pleaded guilty to attempting to damage the system of IT Intelligence, a computer service company he had worked for. He also admitted unauthorised access to the company's computer system and possession of matter capable of causing it damage.
Dublin District Court heard that O'Connor had worked with IBM before joining IT Intelligence, which he said he assisted in setting up, but his relationship with the company was "turbulent" and he eventually left.
In April last year he went to an Internet cafe armed with a virus he had downloaded from the Internet on to a floppy disk. Using access codes he took with him from IT Intelligence, he got into its system and made it appear as if an e-mail had been sent from one of the directors of the company.
He e-mailed it to around 50 people including a director, Mr Max Turpie, who spotted that it could not have come from the purported source.
Mr Turpie told the court he had had to get staff to disinfect not only their own system but those of clients who might also have been sent the e-mail. He estimated it cost around £5,000 in terms of lost revenue from staff going around to check that systems were clear.
Judge Timothy Lucey said the sentence open to him was up to 12 months' imprisonment but if £2,500 was paid by December 12th he would be prepared to deal with it by fine.
Sentencing was adjourned until that date.