This mom faces up to 42 years in prison after hacking a school computer and changing her kids’ grades

I’m sure it’s sad for parents to see their children fail in school.

But it’s even sadder to see a parent sneak into the school system to change her kids’ grades, effectively cheating for them.

That’s exactly what happened in the Northwestern Lehigh School district. A 45-year-old mother changed grades for two of her children in high school.

It’s reported that she changed her daughter’s grade from “F” for failing to “M” for medical excuse, then later boosted her son’s grade from 98% to 99%.

How she changed the grades

Using the word “hack” loosely, we can say that she hacked into the school grade system. She worked previously as a secretary in the school district and knew the superintendent’s credentials.

According to state police, she logged in as the superintendent 110 times, changing grades and accessing other faculty email accounts. She also accessed the district’s network drive, which contained ”thousands of files associated with district policy, contract information, employee reports and personnel issues.” (ABC)

Venusto faces six charges of third-degree felonies for “unlawful use of a computer.”

Ethical vs. Legal

“State police said she admitted to changing the grades, but thought her actions were merely unethical— not illegal.”

Ethical or not, changing your grades for your children is wrong. In this case, it was also illegal. As a result, the mother no longer works at the school and faces up to 42 years in prison or $90,000 in fines.

That’s an expensive lesson to learn.

[ABC News via Time]