To keep Tor hack source code secret, DOJ dismisses child porn case

How comes they are charged with "accessing the website"? Is it illegal or what?

Won't someone think of the children?

Yes, but there are a few details that ars is not mentioning. They didnt just "access" the website. The website needed registration. These people had registered accounts. They did not stumble upon it by accident. Then the malware was limited to those accessing the "hardcore" section. Those accessing only legally grey-area material (ie nude but no sex acts, or images where age was questionable) were not caught up. Deliberately trying to access material you know is illegal, then actually doing so, is a crime.

There were no doubt other steps taken to limit the field of people to charge. Shared computers and shared IP addresses (vpns, school networks etc) seem to have been deselected. The man living on his own, with his name attached to a non-proxied internet connection, makes for an easy prosecution. They must have a far longer list of suspects ... who may now be on some sort of watch list. I suggest they think twice about boarding an international flight with a laptop. Expect to be randomly searched.

I think they want to to disclose. I think prosecutors expected that they would be allowed to do so by now. They probably assumed the exploit would have been patched away, or that some better tool would have come allong by this point in time. Id bet good money that this tool is still in active use by some three-letter agency. Should it be discovered or patched before the SOL, its intel value will drop and prosecutions will begin again.

I don't quite see why they can't use the same method they use in espionage cases in this situation - if there's classified evidence, the defence lawyers need to get security clearances and are under the same obligation not to further disclose the information as anyone else (even to their own client).