DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN — A former IT administrator for a non-profit that specializes in fighting AIDS and homelessness was sentenced to community service Thursday by a Brooklyn judge for hacking into his boss’ computer.
J. Anthony Ilustrisimo, 28, will have to perform 150 hours of community service following his September guilty plea to unauthorized use of a computer.
Ilustrisimo worked as the lead administrator in the information technology department of non-profit Housing Works for nearly four years, beginning December 2009. In January 2014, another IT employee at the company noticed his computer had been logged into under a different account, prosecutors said.
The employee later learned that keylogging software — which tracks key strokes on a computer — had been installed and alerted his supervisor. The boss recognized the user name JOK3RR after having played computer games with Ilustrisimo for years and then reported the case to authorities, the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office said.
The keylogging software recorded data such as passwords and other business-related information.
“Computer hacking invades privacy and can cause substantial damage to people’s finances and reputations,” Brooklyn District Attorney Ken Thompson said in a statement.
“That’s why we’re determined to investigate and fully prosecute anyone who hacks into a computer network here in Brooklyn — whether they successfully steal information or not.”
If Ilustrisimo doesn’t perform the community service, he’ll face up to a year in jail.
His defense attorney, Donald Yannella, said Ilustrisimo client comes from a good family and has no prior convictions.
"In the realm of computer crimes, it is a relatively minor offense because it does not involve accessing the computer network for purposes of committing a more serious crime," he said.
