Comment by searealist
11 days ago
Swartz was federally charged with wire fraud and violations of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act based on allegedly unauthorized access, not simply prosecuted for copyright infringement or “downloading articles.” Also, he was offered a plea deal of 6 months and his own attorneys did not expect him to serve any time even if rejecting the plea deal and convicted.
Meta is accused of civil copyright infringement.
Very different things.
And, I feel like people really gloss over, perhaps because it is uncomfortable to think about...
He took his own life.
There is no doubt the government put him in an uncomfortable position, but his story is a gross and tragic outlier. It's hard to draw any patterned conclusions from it, especially because we'll never know how the case would have worked out had Swartz not exited the judicial process.
As someone, who was wrongly accused of a crime, and had to go to court over it. I can relate, I was massively suicidal, made a whole plan and stockpiled what was required to do it. I was having vivid dreams of even more extreme ways I could go about it.
As you can tell that never happened, but at the same time I always argue in comment sections over his case, as people so wildly misrepresent what happened to their own gains. Especially the fact he willingly and continuingly went around blockers put in place to stop the activity from happening, even after being caught.
Aaron had a history of depression and suicidal ideation that long predates his prosecution.
Also: https://www.unqualified-reservations.org/2013/01/noam-chomsk...
He did. But it in no way excuses the way they treated him
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Meta should absolutely be routinely charged for violations of CFAA given the things they do. Zuckerberg personally.