[h=3]By KEACH HAGEY[/h]A 26-year-old journalist has been charged with allegedly conspiring with members of the hacker group Anonymous to hack into the Tribune Co. system and alter a news story on the Los Angeles Times website, the Justice Department said Thursday.
Matthew Keys, of Secaucus, N.J., was charged in the Eastern District of California with three felony counts related to information transfer that carry a penalty of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine for each count, the Justice Department said.
The complaint alleges that in December 2010, Mr. Keys, which it describes as a "recently terminated employee" of Tribune's KTXL Fox 40 television station in Sacramento, Calif., shared login information for Tribune's computer system with members of Anonymous in an online forum. According to the complaint, he then told them to "go [expletive] some [expletive] up."
Several days later, a member of the alleged conspiracy altered a Los Angeles Times news story. The complaint includes a snippet of the defaced news story, in which words were added to a political story about Rep. Steny Hoyer.
Mr. Keys currently works at Reuters. Mr. Keys joined Reuters as deputy social media editor in January 2012.
Mr. Keys didn't respond to an emailed request for comment.
In an online chat reproduced in the complaint, a member of the conspiracy later bragged to Mr. Keys that the alterations to the news story had stayed up on the Los Angeles Times website for a half an hour.
In the chat, Mr. Keys, who used the online nickname AESCracked, said the defacing of the news story was "nice."
A spokesman for Tribune Co. declined to comment.
Thomson Reuters, the parent company of Reuters, said on Thursday: "We are aware of the charges brought by the Department of Justice against Matthew Keys, an employee of our news organization. Thomson Reuters is committed to obeying the rules and regulations in every jurisdiction in which it operates. Any legal violations, or failures to comply with the company's own strict set of principles and standards, can result in disciplinary action. We would also observe the indictment alleges the conduct occurred in December 2010; Mr. Keys joined Reuters in 2012, and while investigations continue we will have no further comment."
Matthew Keys, of Secaucus, N.J., was charged in the Eastern District of California with three felony counts related to information transfer that carry a penalty of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine for each count, the Justice Department said.
The complaint alleges that in December 2010, Mr. Keys, which it describes as a "recently terminated employee" of Tribune's KTXL Fox 40 television station in Sacramento, Calif., shared login information for Tribune's computer system with members of Anonymous in an online forum. According to the complaint, he then told them to "go [expletive] some [expletive] up."
Several days later, a member of the alleged conspiracy altered a Los Angeles Times news story. The complaint includes a snippet of the defaced news story, in which words were added to a political story about Rep. Steny Hoyer.
Mr. Keys currently works at Reuters. Mr. Keys joined Reuters as deputy social media editor in January 2012.
Mr. Keys didn't respond to an emailed request for comment.
In an online chat reproduced in the complaint, a member of the conspiracy later bragged to Mr. Keys that the alterations to the news story had stayed up on the Los Angeles Times website for a half an hour.
In the chat, Mr. Keys, who used the online nickname AESCracked, said the defacing of the news story was "nice."
A spokesman for Tribune Co. declined to comment.
Thomson Reuters, the parent company of Reuters, said on Thursday: "We are aware of the charges brought by the Department of Justice against Matthew Keys, an employee of our news organization. Thomson Reuters is committed to obeying the rules and regulations in every jurisdiction in which it operates. Any legal violations, or failures to comply with the company's own strict set of principles and standards, can result in disciplinary action. We would also observe the indictment alleges the conduct occurred in December 2010; Mr. Keys joined Reuters in 2012, and while investigations continue we will have no further comment."