United States v. Kane

United States v. Kane

John Kane discovered a software bug in a video poker game which allowed him to access previous winning hands and trigger a jackpot. Kane then contacted Andre Nestor who flew out to meet Kane and joined him in exploiting this bug for profit. The two continued this for nearly five months, from April 2009 to September 2009. Both Kane and Nestor were later arrested and charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

About United States v. Kane in brief

Summary United States v. KaneJohn Kane discovered a software bug in a video poker game which allowed him to access previous winning hands and trigger a jackpot. Kane then contacted Andre Nestor who flew out to meet Kane and joined him in exploiting this bug for profit. The two continued this for nearly five months, from April 2009 to September 2009. Both Kane and Nestor were later arrested and charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and violating Title 18 U.S. C. § 1030 of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. Ultimately, the Court ruled that the government’s argument failed to sufficiently meet the “exceeding authorized access” requirement of Title 18.

S.C.  § 1030 moving to approve the Defendants’ Motions to Dismiss. The Court held that video poker machines perform functions that directly align it with what constitutes a “protected computer” under 18. U. S C. C. S 1030. The ruling follows the precedent established in United States v. Nosal, 676 F. 3d 854, in which the magistrate called the government’s argument directly analogous to the Government’s argument in Nosal. The court concluded that the need for a more “angential relationship to the mores of interstate commerce,” which is used in or affecting foreign commerce or commerce outside the United States, was not met.