Expert: Dan Pepper - 7/22/2008

Question
Dear Dan,
I was recently fired from a company based in Cleveland. I then went to Ireland to work for another company. A couple months later my hotmail, yahoo and skype accounts were hacked and the passwords changed. More importantly, they forwarded ALL of my emails to an unknown address.

I recently became aware that it was my ex-employer. The way I know...because in a meeting, he bragged about it. He is accusing me of sharing trade secrets (which I did not) and said he has EVERY ONE of my emails. He is now blackmailing me to be THE star witness in a civil suit against the London company....big money.

Is it illegal to hack into someone's personal email?
If so is it a state or federal crime?
Can you direct me to the federal and ohio statutes?
Would this be considered blackmail?

Thanks for any light you can shed on my dilemma.  

Answer
Shane, this is a pretty complex situation.

Here are some resources to check out:

Federal computer crime laws:  http://www.usdoj.gov/criminal/cybercrime/cclaws.html

State laws:  http://www.onlinesecurity.com/forum/article46.php
http://law.findlaw.com/state-laws/computer-crimes/ohio/

Blackmail is not in and of itself illegal, unless it is considered extortion.  The difference is that extortion involves an underlying, independent criminal act, while blackmail does not.

I would recommend you contact your local law enforcement agency to determine if they are willing to pursue this on your behalf.  From a civil perspective, you should speak to a local attorney who has familiarity with computer crimes.  As I mentioned, you have a complex situation which should be looked at carefully.

PLEASE NOTE that the foregoing post is not legal advice, merely constitutes general information.