![\"Boy](\"https:\/\/marksaywriter.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Boy-at-computer-Stupid-Corn-public-domain-via-Wikimedia.jpeg\")
<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\u201cHis father.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHas he asked for a solicitor?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHe said we can talk without one \u2026 initially.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSo we might get some understanding?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHopefully. But the guy is obviously in shock, struggling to understand what all this involves. I\u2019d guess he could change his mind at any time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSo we play it gently.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDespite all the evidence.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYes. There are loads of things that can go wrong with this.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We took a few steps towards the door. Only two of us were to enter the room, me and Jenny Mortimer. She had been trained for interviews with child suspects and proved she could be sensitive with the ability to get clear answers, but this was going to be different. We paused at the door and I whispered a question.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHow many dead now?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cEleven. But they\u2019re fearing there are more to come.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jenny and I shared a glance, drew deep breaths and entered the interview room. The father and son were seated on one side of the table. The father looked at us, confused and anxious, clearly the type who had never been in a police station before. He kept a hand on the back of his son\u2019s wrist. The boy, fourteen years-old, was dressed in a blue short sleeved T-shirt over long sleeves and stared straight ahead. As I sat to face him his eyes met mine but didn\u2019t seem to connect. I couldn\u2019t tell if he was scared, curious or angry that he had been taken away from his computer screen and off to a building where they took bad people. I spoke to the father.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAre you happy for this to go ahead?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYes, but treat him gently.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I switched on the recorder and went through the protocol statements, noticing that the father gave the boy\u2019s hand a squeeze. I let Jenny begin the questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHow are you doing Colin?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He didn\u2019t respond immediately but looked down and pulled his hand free of his father\u2019s. For a few seconds he kept his gaze on the table surface. Then he mumbled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOK. I suppose.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDo you know why you\u2019re here?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBecause I found a way in.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat\u2019s right. But you know there\u2019s more to it than that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He didn\u2019t answer. I looked at his father and noticed his expression had stiffened. Jenny spoke again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou know you didn\u2019t just find a way in. It was a hospital\u2019s network, and you changed things on some of the systems.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Colin kept his eyes down and nodded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd you know what some of those systems do. They help the doctors and nurses, help them to provide care for people who are very sick.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He nodded again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSo why did you look for a way in.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBecause \u2026. I had read about it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cRead about what?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat they don\u2019t always make sure there are proper defences in place. They leave gaps and weak points.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou mean that hospital?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo. I mean all of them. Hospitals and schools and the government. They don\u2019t know where all the vulnerable points are, so they need someone to show them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jenny and I shared a glance. I had heard the term \u2018ethical hacker\u2019, but it didn\u2019t seem to fit in this case. I asked the next question.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSo you found a way in. Why didn\u2019t you tell them?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Another pause. The father patted Colin\u2019s hand. The boy looked at him for a moment, dipped his eyes again and spoke.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBecause I\u2019m fourteen. They wouldn\u2019t have listened. I had to do something to make them take notice.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSo you got into some of the clinical systems and made changes, messed things around a little?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He didn\u2019t respond. I sensed that he might go silent. I looked at his father.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHas he done anything like this before.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I saw the fright in his eyes and knew the answer. I gave him a moment, then he spoke.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOnce, about six months ago. His mother caught him looking at a screen, he tried to switch off but she stopped him, and realised it was the staff records from his school\u2019s IT system. She called me and we made him go back through the other pages he had accessed. There was something about complaints against a teacher, something about exclusions from the school. We decided that was enough and made him get out of the system and delete all the browsing history and cookies from the past month. He did what he was told.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat was once that you knew of.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOnce that we knew of.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd you kept this to yourselves.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe thought that was the best thing to do.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDid you ask him if he had done anything like that before?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There was a moment of hesitation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHe said he hadn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDid you believe him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHe doesn\u2019t lie to us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jenny tapped her knee against mine beneath the desk, a reminder not to push him too hard. I suppressed a mild anger; I wasn\u2019t convinced. She spoke next.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cColin, when you found a way in and began to look at the systems, did you know then what they did?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He held back for a few seconds, then said yes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd did you know that it could be very dangerous to interfere with them? Or even to look at them?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He kept his head down, balled his hands into fists and pressed them to the sides of his head. I looked at his father hoping that he would provide a nudge, but he remained still. Jenny broke the silence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cColin, you didn\u2019t want a drink earlier. Would you like one now?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He looked up, nodded, and asked for an orange juice. I stood up, reckoning they were seeing Jenny as more sympathetic, wanting to give them a minute or two with her. I asked the father if he wanted a drink. He said no. I opened the door and asked the constable outside if he could get a carton of orange juice from the vending machine. As he walked away I stood at the open door, listening, knowing the recorder was still running. Jenny changed tack, asking how long Colin had been into computers \u2013 since he was eight \u2013 and what he enjoyed about them. The father said the boy had been very withdrawn, almost always silent, when he was young, but computers had engaged his mind, encouraged him to communicate with other people \u2013 to some extent. Jenny commented that he was doing well, that he was obviously highly intelligent. Colin said he wanted to study computer science at university and didn\u2019t want to have to wait until he was eighteen. His teachers had told him he may be accepted a year or two early. I thought that wasn\u2019t going to happen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A detective appeared in the corridor, stayed out of sight from the room and whispered to me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnother patient\u2019s died. That\u2019s twelve.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I took a deep breath. It felt like a long wait before the constable reappeared with the orange juice. I closed the door and gave the drink to Colin. He slurped through the straw, then kept it between his lips, continuing to stare at the table. I thought I could see a trace of anxiety in his face. His father took the carton and placed a hand on his shoulder. Jenny asked a question.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCan you tell us how you found the way in? I suspect it\u2019s very complicated.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Colin explained something I barely understood, talking about a firewall, access management, the fact that the hospital didn\u2019t have a zero trust policy. I was sure that Jenny didn\u2019t understand either, but she responded with a faint smile and when he seemed to have finished said she was impressed by how much he knew about it all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou\u2019re obviously very bright. I bet there are a lot of people who work in IT who wouldn\u2019t be able to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Colin looked up at her and smiled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI know. And it\u2019s because of that they don\u2019t get it that people like me can get into their networks.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
People like me. <\/em>I had read reports of criminals and cyber terrorists grooming script kiddies to do their dirty work. It prompted me to ask a question.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDo you know any other people like you?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He stared at me, an extra intensity in his eyes, but said nothing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHave you been talking with people about doing something like this?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He dipped his head and looked down. There was a silence that told me I had hit on something. Then his father spoke.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe\u2019s never told us anything about other people.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n We let the silence linger for a while, then Jenny tapped my knee again. Her turn to speak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cColin, we know that there are people out there who look for someone like you. They know there are some very bright teenagers who know how to do what you\u2019ve done. And if there is someone who\u2019s encouraged you to do this, then it\u2019s them who are the bad people, not you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He was fourteen, he should know that screwing up a hospital IT system would hurt people.<\/em> I kept the thought to myself. Jenny took the point further.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIf you can tell us about these people, give us some names, what they said to you, it will do a lot to help us. And it will help you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Colin kept his eyes down, but I noticed a shift in his father\u2019s expression, conveying a small trace of hope. He gave his son\u2019s hand a gentle squeeze and spoke softly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cColin, if there was someone, you should tell us about it. Help us all understand.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He looked at me and Jenny. I felt a faint ripple of empathy in the room. He looked at his son again. Colin kept his eyes down. The silence began to drag.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cColin.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The boy mumbled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s only for us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFor who?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFor us, because we\u2019re special.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n It confirmed the suspicion \u2013 he had been manipulated into what he had done \u2013 but showed there was another barrier to overcome.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWho told you that?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He didn\u2019t answer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cCan you tell us any names?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He still didn\u2019t answer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhere did you speak to them?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n His father leaned towards him and spoke softly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cColin, it\u2019s better if you answer the questions.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The boy looked at his father and for a moment there was a faint smile, a moment of love between them. Then he straightened a little, pushed his hands over his eyes and forehead and into his hair and turned his head to one side then the other. I thought he was ready to open up. Then he dipped his head again, with elbows on the table and hands on his scalp.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cColin.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNo\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPlease.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He shook his head.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019m special. We don\u2019t talk with people who aren\u2019t special.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The father looked at us with a faint shake of his head. I shared a glance with Jenny, both of unsure what to say next. There was a pause, then she took the lead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cColin, you know it was a hospital that you broke into, and that hospitals are there to look after sick people.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He kept his head down and nodded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnd that when you mess up their IT systems it gets in the way. People get hurt. Did you know that?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n His hands were now over most of his face, but he could still speak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWho said that?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s bound to happen. It\u2019s because of what hospitals do. That\u2019s why we mustn\u2019t interfere with their systems.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut they shouldn\u2019t have let me get in.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut they couldn\u2019t stop you. And Colin, sorry, but people have got hurt.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He pushed his hand back through his hair and closed his eyes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDidn\u2019t die.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I felt a moment of inpatience and opened my mouth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPeople have died. Twelve of them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He looked up at me. There was a brief silence, then he let out a moan and began to move his head from side to side. His father placed a hand on his shoulder. Colin fended him off and sprung out of his chair. He moved back towards a corner of the room, letting out a wordless moan. The father followed, placed a hand on his arm and was fended off again. Then he turned and threw an angry stare at me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou idiot! You\u2019re hurting him!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I muttered under my breath: \u201cHe\u2019s killed twelve people.\u201d Jenny grabbed my arm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat\u2019s it!\u201d the father said. \u201cNo more until we have a solicitor with us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n We sat for a moment, watching Colin as he pressed himself to the corner and repeated the moan. Jenny squeezed my arm, the sign for us to get out. She turned off the recorder, we got up and left the room. We were at the end of the corridor before I dared to say anything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBollocks!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n She spoke quietly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou said what I wanted to say.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut you didn\u2019t, I did. Now we\u2019re in a swamp.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe were already in a swamp. Legal, ethical, psychological. We couldn\u2019t avoid it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut there might have been a way through. First step and I\u2019ve taken us into the mire.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n She didn\u2019t reply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n