Engineers plead guilty to hacking traffic computer

LOS ANGELES—Two city engineers accused of hacking Los Angeles traffic signals to create jams during a labor dispute have pleaded guilty to felony charges.

The attorney's office says Gabriel Murillo and Kartik Patel pleaded guilty Wednesday to illegally accessing a city computer.

Prosecutors say they illegally accessed the city's traffic computer in August 2006 and disabled signals at four intersections. It took four days to restore operations.

The hacking took place hours before a job action by a union representing city engineers.

Under a plea deal, Murillo and Patel must pay restitution and serve 120 days in jail or perform 240 hours of community service.

Source: mercurynews.com