azelfrath

Without going into details, I recently got off probation after being charged with a federal misdemeanor for accessing a computer and obtaining information. The damages were minimal at best, but I ended up getting a $25,000+ restitution order. I have no other marks on my record, not even a parking ticket.

I am wondering what effect this will have on my career opportunities. I have an AAS in Computer Forensics, and have had a fairly spotty job history due to the probation's prohibition on working with computers. I am in my early 20s and have had one systems administration job before.

When answering, it would be cool to see who has personal experience with this, who is in charge of hiring for their company, or who just has some thoughts.

I often think while driving "How many hackers are there within a mile of me?"

Obviously this number is higher when in a metro area as opposed to rural, but that's about all I can go off of. I don't have any data that says "There are X hackers in Tokyo, Japan but only Y hackers in Toad Suck, Arkansas" so I can't even make assumptions about overall geographical spread.

For the sake of argument, let's keep the definition of "hacker" fairly loose:

- Someone who creatively uses/writes software/hardware, and/or

- Someone who studies security and how to subvert it

I think this is an interesting question for several reasons. First, the challenge of coming up with an accurate way to gauge the number of hackers in the world is intriguing enough, without further breaking it down to "How many hackers are within X miles of my location?" Second, let's just assume we could know exactly how many and our locations. Imagine finding out that your 70-year-old neighbor who bakes you cookies every Sunday in return for helping rake her lawn also enjoys reversing malware samples in her spare time. Last but not least, I think no matter what the number is, high or low, I would be surprised.

So while this isn't a question I readily expect an answer to, feel free to ponder the details of such an experiment or to give a good estimate (along with good, solid reasoning, of course).

So three months ago I was recommended by my instructor for a pentester position. He said that once the class was over (a week from then) he could officially vouch for me, since it's not showing favoritism if I'm not his student. I apply for the position and wait patiently. I email them back about 10 days later as per my instructor's advice asking if they have reviewed my resume, and got no response. I figured they had either ignored, forgotten, or lost my app.

Fast-forward to a few weeks ago when I apply for a sysadmin position at a local ISP. Less than three weeks from applying, I am hired before the background check even clears. I started last Wednesday.

Today, I get an email from the first company saying they want to set up a phone interview.

I really don't know how to handle this. Do I play hardball and tell them I was already hired? Do I ask if they can beat the pay and benefits of my current position? Do I say I am still interested but have been employed elsewhere? Do I tell my current boss that I might be considering a better position at another company?