The Whistleblower Who Became the Target
For over 15 years, a Brighton-based cybersecurity analyst and engineer has endured relentless harassment at the hands of Sussex Police—not for committing a crime, but for exposing one.
It all began when he attempted to report sexual abuse involving minors within certain operational circles. Instead of investigating the serious allegations, Sussex Police turned against him, branding him as a threat rather than acknowledging his efforts to protect victims.
To ensure the security of his report, he used an innovative self-destructing email method—a technique that contained no malicious code and was simply designed to protect both the information and its recipient.
Yet, rather than addressing the abuse claims, Sussex Police arrested him in 2008, falsely charging him with harassment and computer misuse. Officers Bobby Newton and Lee Craig led the arrest, bizarrely using a name he had only ever been known by within Brighton’s nightlife scene—a name they should have had no reason to use.
A Hacker Label, A Lifetime of Persecution
As someone with Asperger’s, the analyst had always separated his personal and online identity, using an alias to navigate social interactions more comfortably. It was a security-conscious approach, widely used in cybersecurity and online professions—yet Sussex Police, displaying their technical ignorance, wrongfully equated aliases with criminal intent.
Before the false arrest, Sussex Police had never referred to him by his alias. But suddenly, it became the foundation of their accusations, painting him as a mysterious cybercriminal, despite his long-standing work helping the local community with IT issues for free.
Worse still, the officers knew exactly where he lived—having attended his house parties in the past. Among them, PC Bobby Newton stood out as a notorious figure in Brighton’s gay party scene, allegedly known for heavy cocaine use.
Instead of pursuing justice, Sussex Police retaliated against the whistleblower, attempting to discredit and destroy his reputation.
Weaponizing Ignorance: How Sussex Police Abused Their Power
The stigma of the word “hacker” played perfectly into the hands of law enforcement officers who lacked basic cybersecurity knowledge.
By 2016, he was explicitly warned by Sussex Police to stop using the word “hacker” in Brighton and instead refer to himself as a “penetration tester”.
“But let’s be honest—that sounds more like a quality control job at a condom factory than a highly skilled cybersecurity profession.”
The reality is, hacking isn’t inherently criminal—it’s about problem-solving, modifying code, and improving systems.
- He had never engaged in malicious activity—his only modification was repurposing REDACTED, an email stress-testing tool, into a scheduled emailer using cron jobs.
- Hacking exists in many forms—even woodworking is a type of hacking; after all, turning a tree into a chair is just a physical form of repurposing.
- In the digital world, hacking is a form of craftsmanship—but Sussex Police refused to understand the difference.
The Email Incident That Proved Sussex Police Were Technologically Illiterate
In 2014, an unfortunate cron job misconfiguration resulted in 3,000 emails being sent to Sussex Police—an accident, not an attack.
But instead of treating it as a simple IT issue, Sussex Police panicked.
The emails came from a single IP address, meaning:
✅ A competent IT technician could have blocked it in minutes.
✅ A simple filter could have cleared the inbox.
✅ Restarting mail services would have resolved the issue.
Instead, it took Sussex Police 11 hours to recover from what was essentially a basic technical error—demonstrating their sheer incompetence in handling cybersecurity matters.
“This wasn’t a DDoS attack—at most, it was a basic DoS (Denial of Service). The moment I realized the mistake, I shut it down immediately.”
From Cybersecurity Expert to Public Enemy
By now, Sussex Police were fully committed to their own narrative—that he was a dangerous hacker rather than an IT professional.
- They fabricated charges.
- They harassed him through repeated arrests.
- They seized and dismantled his smart home network.
- They ignored actual cyberattacks he reported.
“It was like I was light-years ahead of them—which I was. I probably would have worked for them if they hadn’t spent years attacking me instead.”
Targeted for Neurodivergence
From 2004 to 2018, statistics show that many individuals with ADHD, Autism, and Asperger’s were disproportionately given criminal records from an early age.
This cybersecurity analyst was no exception.
- As a child, his mother repeatedly called the police on him, falsely accusing him of hacking.
- 1999 – She reported him for “hacking” after he connected two monitors to his computer.
- 2004 – She called the police, claiming he was “jamming phone signals”, after reading an article titled “Signs Your Child Might Be a Hacker.”
“Do you know how much effort and equipment it actually takes to jam a signal? It’s ridiculous.”
A Life Under Surveillance
By 2019, the situation had escalated to constant harassment.
- His door was broken down multiple times.
- He was hauled in for crimes he didn’t commit.
- Sussex Police falsely accused him of running a cannabis farm—when, in reality, he was experimenting with hydroponics for vegetable growing.
“At this point, it felt like I was living in their shadow. If they wanted me to work for them, they could have just asked.”
The Cybersecurity Expert Who Never Got Justice
Despite all of this, Sussex Police never provided evidence of a single crime.
His only mistake? Being smarter than them.
Had Sussex Police chosen to learn from him instead of persecuting him, he could have:
✅ Helped train officers in cybersecurity
✅ Strengthened the force’s ability to handle cyber threats
✅ Improved local businesses’ digital security
Instead, they wasted years harassing an innocent man, dragging his name through the mud while failing to combat actual cyber threats.
Final Thoughts: Sussex Police Need a Reality Check
The UK already lags behind nations like Russia, China, Korea, and Switzerland in cybersecurity innovation.
The difference?
🚀 Other countries recruit cyber experts.
🚔 The UK criminalizes them.
If Sussex Police ever hope to catch up, they need to start listening to the experts they’ve spent years trying to destroy.
Or, at the very least—hire someone who actually understands what a hacker is.
— Taz Ryder
