Violations of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) can be either misdemeanors or felonies. It's definitely broad enough that doing so could get you in serious trouble if pursued.
Would it even crash a computer? They would fill up their hard drive but that would just yield warnings to the user in most operating systems. Chances are they would kill it manually because it would take a long time
Is it a felony to crash someone's computer?
Violations of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) can be either misdemeanors or felonies. It's definitely broad enough that doing so could get you in serious trouble if pursued.
If it causes more than $5k in damage. Otherwise, it's a misdemeanor.
But you probably don't want to be investigated for either.
A deliberate act of revenge against a former employer... wouldn't be given much benefit of the doubt by the courts.
Would it even crash a computer? They would fill up their hard drive but that would just yield warnings to the user in most operating systems. Chances are they would kill it manually because it would take a long time
Possibly, yes.
If done deliberately…
Nothing wrong with getting some satisfaction. Just don't do it in a way that can be traced back to you.