By Stevie Smith Dec 17, 2007, 10:54 GMT
The whole ‘what does this button do?’ scenario has taken on a more ominous tone this week following the actions of a Californian man who moved to take vent his job-related frustrations by depriving the entire state of electrical power.
Lonnie Charles Denison pleads guilty to attempting to shut down the Californian power grid in April 2007. Credit: Sandia.gov
More pointedly, contract computer technician Lonnie Charles Denison (33) of South Natomas, Sacramento, has plead guilty to entering a control room at the Independent System Operator (ISO) data centre in Folsom, California, whereupon he smashed the glass covering of a button labelled ‘Emergency Power Off,’ and duly pressed it.
Californian authorities have outlined that Denison’s actions, which took place in April of this year, were the result of him being upset with his employers, reports the San Francisco Chronicle.
By depressing the emergency button, Denison subsequently stopped the ISO data centre from communicating with the electricity grid for around two hours, leaving it susceptible to shortages. Luckily, no blackouts resulted from the communication blockage, which was only purged after the diligent actions of some 20 computer technicians – for a cost of $14,000 USD.
Court records in the case against Denison also reveal that he sent a bomb threat e-mail to his boss the following day, warning him to: "Get out before the timer expires."
A related affidavit associated with the case reveals that Denison’s actions were uncovered via surveillance footage and records that revealed use of his access code. Following his admission of guilt, Denison is to be sentenced on February 29 of 2008.
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