Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Kevin Poulsen is a former computer hacker, once known as “the Hannibal Lecter of cyber crime,” whose best known hack involved penetrating telephone company computers in the early 1990s to win radio station phone-in contests. By taking over all the phone lines leading to Los Angeles radio stations, he was able to guarantee that he would be the proper-numbered caller to win, for example, $20,000 in cash, and a Porsche 944 S2 Cabriolet. When the FBI started pursuing Poulsen, he went underground as a fugitive. He was featured on NBC’s Unsolved Mysteries, and was finally arrested in April 1991 after 18 months on the run. He pleaded guilty to computer fraud and served a little over 5 years in prison. At the time, it was the longest U.S. sentence ever given for hacking. Following his release from prison, Poulsen was briefly barred from using computers. Reformed, but still possessed of the curiosity that contributed to his hacking when he was younger, he became a journalist. His first magazine feature ran in WIRED in 1998, and covered computer programmers who were driven to survivalist tactics by fear of the looming Y2K bug.
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Kevin Poulsen is a former computer hacker, once known as “the Hannibal Lecter of cyber crime,” whose best known hack involved penetrating telephone company computers in the early 1990s to win radio station phone-in contests. By taking over all the phone lines leading to Los Angeles radio stations, he was able to guarantee that he would be the proper-numbered caller to win, for example, $20,000 in cash, and a Porsche 944 S2 Cabriolet. When the FBI started pursuing Poulsen, he went underground as a fugitive. He was featured on NBC’s Unsolved Mysteries, and was finally arrested in April 1991 after 18 months on the run. He pleaded guilty to computer fraud and served a little over 5 years in prison. At the time, it was the longest U.S. sentence ever given for hacking. Following his release from prison, Poulsen was briefly barred from using computers. Reformed, but still possessed of the curiosity that contributed to his hacking when he was younger, he became a journalist. His first magazine feature ran in WIRED in 1998, and covered computer programmers who were driven to survivalist tactics by fear of the looming Y2K bug.
At BigSpeak, we are committed to living our purpose every day. What better way is there to AWAKEN GREATNESS WITHIN than to partner with our speakers to spark the inspiration and creativity in all of us? BigSpeak Speakers Bureau has the top keynote speakers, award-winning innovation keynote speakers, best motivational speakers, inspiring female keynote speakers, and best sales keynote speakers available. Book a BigSpeak top keynote speaker, motivational speaker, or inspirational speaker and experience the best-rated keynote speakers in the world.
To hire this speaker to speak at your next event, contact BigSpeak Speakers Bureau (805) 965-1400.
For information about BigSpeak,
bigspeak.com
