Alias Fortezza

A Hacker's Odyssey

By: David Schrooten, Freke Vuijst

Narrated by: Boris Hiestand, Freke Vuijst

A harrowing odyssey of cybercrime and punishment in the United States.

In 2012, 21-year-old Dutch hacker David Schrooten was living at his parents’ house in the Netherlands and spending most of his time online. When he wasn’t squabbling with fellow hackers, he was making plans to visit his Romanian girlfriend. His life turned upside-down when Interpol agents arrested him at an airport in Romania on international hacking charges involving $63 million in damages. Soon Schrooten found himself extradited to the United States, a country where he had never been before. He was imprisoned in Seattle, WA, where he awaited trial, some 5,000 miles from home.

While his future hung in the air, Schrooten kept a journal chronicling his every experience - from the inept public defenders on whom his life depended, to the unimaginable horrors of solitary confinement. And it was during this time that Schrooten struck up a correspondence with a Dutch-American journalist who vowed to help him tell his story.

Alias Fortezza: A Hacker’s Odyssey is the astounding journey, told in Schrooten’s own words, of a young foreigner’s incarceration, as well as a stunning examination of the US justice system at work.

©2019 David Schrooten and Freke Vuijst (P)2019 Audible Originals, LLC.

Cyber crime needs to be prosecuted

I really tried to empathize with the protagonist. His young age and lack of experience is in his favor to forgive him for his deep anti-American sentiment that this entire book radiates from.

He makes the US feel like Stalin’s Gulag. Which of course is not true. Being incarcerated is certainly not meant to be fun. It is meant to punish.

The look inside the prison system especially if you are innocent is a very scary thing. Solitary confinement is not something anyone can fathom.
I am sure this was a complete nightmare for this 22 year old kid.

However I believe the US is doing the right thing by sending a signal to cyber criminals everywhere that they will be hunted down and be harshly prosecuted.

Very anti-american

It was hard to listen to all the anti-American content. This guy basically feels he was not in the wrong because what he did is not a crime in his own country. To add to this, the chapters are alternated with the co-author who reads in her own very grating voice, more anti-American stuff. I stuck with the story to the end because if you concentrated on 'what' happed it is fascinating.

Very compelling story that was we'll performed.

I liked how there was little bias added the story, it could have easily gone the other way and all too often does nowadays. well done.

Great inside look at justice and injustice in the American penal system

Freke Vuijst does a remarkably thorough and fascinating job uncovering the inequities and unconscionable practices in the US penal system - from overuse of inhuman isolation to privatization of penitentiaries and so much more. This is countered by the human interest story of David, a young Dutch man incarcerated for cyber crimes in a country he had never visited for longer than others who had done far worse than he. A compelling read for anyone who cares about how we treat those we say we want to rehabilitate and return to society.

Narration was irritating

This was a good story but the narrators accent grated on my nerves. I finished it because as an IT professional it interested me although the choice of narrator was unfortunate.

Depth of Corruption & Inhumanity in US Prisons

This book completely captivated me from the 1st page to the last. A brutal and penetrating look at the corruption and inhumane way inmates are treated in the US penal system. An eye opening account of what can happen to a naive and reckless Teenager caught in the pride of winning hacking contests for thrills.

interesting factual story w/ legal backing

the book intertwines chapters by the character himself on the story as it happens mixed witg chapters by a reporter on the legal and political issues around his case and the overall panorama (not spoiling). while these chapters enrich the book and the reader, they break somewhat the rhythm of the book as they tend to be extensive. their content is valuable nonetheless and could be served as an appendix (but probably I would then skip it...). the reporter narrates those parts and she has a sharp accent too. the author is very young and it sometimes shows in the descriptions he makes. anyway, his story is worth telling and he delivers it.

Punitive is not Reformative

Awesome insight into the failed and corrupt American prison and legal industry. A must listen.

America, the judicial bully

great story and well told.
I found I needed to speed up Freke's narration as it was so slow and juxtaposed to that of Boris.

eye opening

the world is not as it seems but some humanity remains it is good for peopple to share their experiences with the world