Hector Monsegur might well be the most hated man in the world of hackers these days, but he's also a free man as a result. A judge today let the 30-year-old Monsegur off with 7 months' time served, even though he faced up to 26 years in prison, reports Bloomberg. The reason is that the former leader of the Anonymous offshoot LulzSec immediately turned into an informant upon his arrest three years ago. Prosecutors say he then worked "around the clock" as a mole, collaborating with fellow hackers and turning over the information to the feds.
“I assure you I will not be back in this courtroom,” Monsegur, aka Sabu, told the judge today. “I’m not the same person you saw three years ago.” The judge credited his "extraordinary assistance" with helping stop 300 hacks, adding that the threats and public harassment he has faced since becoming an informer played a role in the light sentence, reports Wired. Monsegur helped the feds bust high-profile US hacker Jeremy Hammond, though Hammond made clear at his sentencing that he felt both Monsegur and the government entrapped him. On Twitter today, Anonymous is asking people to show support for Hammond. (More hacker stories.)
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