UNDERGROUND

to get onto his computer and then proceeded to walk him step by step through the 'passwd -f' security bug. Ironically, it was Electron who had discovered that security hole and taught it to Phoenix — a fact Phoenix didn't seem to want to mention to DeHart.

The head of the AFP's Southern Region Computer Crimes Unit, Detective Sergeant Ken Day was in court that day. There was no way he was going to miss this. The same witness noting the tension between Phoenix's parents might also have perceived an undercurrent of hostility between Day and Phoenix — an undercurrent which did not seem to exist between Day and either of the other Realm hackers.

Day, a short, careful man who gave off an air of bottled intensity, seemed to have an acute dislike for Phoenix. By all observations the feeling was mutual. A cool-headed professional, Day would never say anything in public to express the dislike — that was not his style. His dislike was only indicated by a slight tightness in the muscles of an otherwise unreadable face.

On 6 October 1993, Phoenix and Nom stood side by side in the dock for sentencing. Wearing a stern expression, Judge Smith began by detailing both the hackers' charges and the origin of The Realm. But after the summary, the judge saved his harshest rebuke for Phoenix.

'There is nothing . . . to admire about your conduct and every reason why it should be roundly condemned. You pointed out [weaknesses] to some of the system administrators . . . [but] this was more a display of arrogance and a demonstration of what you thought was your superiority rather than an act of altruism on your part.

'You . . . bragged about what you had done or were going to do . . . Your conduct revealed . . . arrogance on your part, open defiance, and an intention to the beat the system. [You] did cause havoc for a time within the various targeted systems.'

Although the judge appeared firm in his views while passing sentence, behind the scenes he had agonised greatly over his decision. He had attempted to balance what he saw as the need