Britain arrests alleged Pentagon hacker

LONDON, June 8 (UPI) -- Scotland Yard has arrested an unemployed computer systems administrator in London for hacking into sensitive U.S. military computers.

Gary McKinnon was charged with gaining illegal access and making unauthorized modifications to 53 computers belonging to NASA, the U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force, the Department of Defense and the Pentagon between 2001 and 2002.

McKinnon, 39, was to appear in court Wednesday to face extradition proceedings for trial in the United States, which estimates the cost of tracking and correcting the security breaches at around $1 million, The Times of London said.

If extradited and found guilty, McKinnon faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $275,000 fine.