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Former 'Jeopardy!' Winner And Professor Pleads Guilty To Hacking Colleagues' Emails
Stephanie Jass once had a seven-game winning streak on the game show. She faces up to five years in prison.
She'll taking Felony Charges for 200, Alex.
A record-breaking former "Jeopardy!" champion has pleaded guilty Wednesday to hacking into her coworker's emails and taking notes on messages from colleagues.
Stephanie Jass, who once had a seven-game winning streak on the game show, has admitted to the unauthorized use of a computer, program or network to gain entry to college email accounts.
Jass had been a history professor at Adrian College in Adrian, Michigan at the time and took advantage of a campus-wide password reset in spring 2017 to gain access to messages sent and received by top campus administrators, according to Michigan Live.
A Michigan State Police report indicated that these included messages sent or received by President Jeffrey Docking and outgoing Vice President Agnes Caldwell. After viewing them, Jass created a document of notes, comments and perceived problems concerning other faculty members. She also reportedly accessed Assistant Vice President Bridgette Winslow's emails, along with the emails of several unnamed faculty members and students, including her stepson, Michigan Live reported.
Lenawee County prosecutor Burke Castleberry Jr. told the Detroit Free Press Jass had access to the email accounts for up to four days.
Her breach was discovered when Jass and another coworker had lunch together. After learning of the hacking, the coworker reported the violation to the school's human resources director. Adrian College then notified the Michigan State Police.
Jass is slated to be sentenced July 20. She could receive up to five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
Jass has been fired from her job at Adrian College. The school in a statement thanked law enforcement officials for cracking the case.
"Adrian College wishes to sincerely thank the Michigan State Police, specifically its Cyber Command Center, and the Lenawee County Prosecutor's Office for their thorough investigation and for ultimately bringing charges and a conviction in this crime," the college said. "Privacy rights are a fundamental principle of our American democracy and Adrian College stands with those who protect these rights."
Jass appeared on "Jeopardy!" more than 10 times and competed in the Tournament of Champions and Battle of the Decades Tournament. Her seven-game win streak happened in October 2012, and she at one point held the record for the most wins by a woman. She reportedly earned about $166,000 from her appearances.
[Photo: Michigan State Police]
