"They've lifted restrictions so that Gary can stay at a few other addresses over the Christmas holiday period until the New Year.The addresses had to be given to the court.They've slightly lifted restrictions regarding the internet. He can work on one machine if he informs them of his IP address and gives them a letter from his employer"
What if the IP address of this single computer is a Private, non-internet routable one which goes through a Network Address Translation gateway ? This is common enough now even for a home system, with say ADSL and / or WiFi hardware routers. This is technically what a Mobile Phone handset with internet data or WAP access provides.
If Gary gets to work for a large organisation, with its own proxy server gateways, does this mean that all the other hundreds or thousands of users of those systems, will have their Communications Traffic Data and possibly the Content of their emails and web browsing put at risk of being snooped on by the authorities ?
What if the IP address is dynamically allocated through DHCP or through a dialup RADIUS server ? Does gary have to report back to the court each time the system automatacially changes the IP address when the lease expires or the connection times out ?
Would they be satisfied with the perfectly valid IP address of 127.0.0.1 ?
The utter clueslessness of the Court system, supposedly in the 21st century, regarding the Internet is simply appalling.
Fred Fry
MAYBE HE should have thought of this before hacking around in systems not owned by him.
All of a surdden he is the victim right?
You might as well defend that a person charged for murder should get his knife back because he cannot do his job without it.
fg
@ Fred - no murderer in the UK would ever be facing 70 years in prison, which is what Gary McKinnon is facing in the USA.
Gary McKinnon has not been charged with any crime in the UK, even though our Computer Misuse Act 1990 applies, as he was physically in the UK, using UK ISPs etc. when he allegedly accessed those systems in the USA illegally.
Nobody, least of all Gary thinks that his actions were very wise or that they should be emulated by anyone else.
Gary should be tried in a UK court, and if sentenced, should serve his prison time in the UK.