Kevin Mitnick, Hacker Who Once Eluded Authorities, Is Dead at 59

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Kevin Mitnick, a reformed hacker who was once one of the most wanted computer criminals in the United States, died on Sunday, according to a statement shared Wednesday by a cybersecurity training company he co-founded and a funeral home in Las Vegas. He was 59. His death was confirmed by Kathy Wattman, a spokeswoman for the training company, KnowBe4. The cause was complications from pancreatic cancer. He had been undergoing treatment at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center following his diagnosis more than a year ago, according to the King David Memorial Chapel & Cemetery in Las Vegas. After serving prison time for breaking into and tampering with corporate computer networks, he was released in 2000 and began a new career as a security consultant, writer and public speaker. Mr. Mitnick was best known for the crime spree during the 1990s that involved the theft of thousands of data files and credit card numbers from computers across the country. He used his skills to work his way into the nation’s phone and cell networks, vandalizing government, corporate and university computer systems.