[ISN] Police arrest Chinese hacker in Tokyo

[InfoSec News]

http://washingtontimes.com/upi/20050706-040227-8401r.htm

July 6, 2005

Police have arrested a Chinese university student in Tokyo, accusing
him of hacking into companies' computer systems to obtain information
on their customers.
      
Yu Hua, 27, a student at a private university and resident of Tokyo,
is accused of violating the anti-hacking law, the Mainichi Shimbun
reported Wednesday.
      
He had placed an advertisement on an Internet bulletin board offering
the customer information for sale. Yu admitted to the allegations
during questioning, telling investigators he needed money for his
tuition fees.
      
In the specific case for which he was arrested, police said Yu used
his home computer to hack into the computer system of the Club Tourism
travel agent between March 15 and 17, obtaining about 160,000 pieces
of personal information on its customers, including their passwords
and names.
      
Investigators are questioning him over allegations that he also hacked
into the computer systems of 13 other companies and obtained
approximately 360,000 pieces of personal information on their
customers.
      
The police suspect that Yu used Chinese software that allows users to
look for security loopholes in computer systems.