Operation Sundevil - Aftermath

Aftermath

In a press release on May 9, 1990, officials from the federal government and the Arizona state government revealed that the Secret Service was involved in the investigation. The Assistant Director of the US Secret Service, Garry M. Jenkins, commented in a press release that, "the Secret Service is sending a clear message to those computer hackers who have decided to violate the laws of this nation in the mistaken belief that they can successfully avoid detection by hiding behind the relative anonymity of their computer terminals."

Two public-access computer systems were shut down in the days following the operation: an AT&T Unix system and a Jolnet system in Lockport, Illinois. Neither has been linked to the operation, however. An AT&T spokesman claimed the shutdown was a result of an internal investigation and was not related to the operation.

In response to the arrests, a group called the Electronic Frontier Foundation was founded by Mitchell Kapor, the founder of Lotus Development Corporation, and John Perry Barlow, an author. The foundation hired lawyers to represent the hackers in two of the cases arising from Operation Sundevil.

Operation Sundevil was the most publicized action by the federal government against hackers. In part due to this, it has been seen as a public-relations stunt and a message to hackers. While it did little overall damage to the hacking community, managing to take down only a small fraction of the BBSes operating at the time, it has been lauded as a tactical success due to the surprise and damage it caused to the communities in comparison to the long wars waged against the Legion of Doom. However, it has also been criticized as a failure due to several unsuccessful prosecutions.