The debates regarding the three Massachusetts Institute of Technology students who released the details on several security flaws found in the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority’s system continue, as the US District Judge George A. O’Toole Jr. announced that the temporary restraining order will not be annulled. In addition, he requested several additional documents from the students with information about their researches and other details such as the report prepared for their professor and the e-mails exchanged with Defcon’s organizers.

Apparently, the students received an A for their research and the 87-slide presentation, with all the needed details to fully take advantage of the flaws, was already available for several weeks on MIT’s Web site.

Five days ago, the MBTA succeeded in obtaining a restraining order forbidding the students Zack Anderson, RJ Ryan and Alessandro Chiesa from publicly exposing the results of their research during the Defcon hacking conference. The already scheduled event was supposed to offer information about a series of flaws identified in the MBTA’s CharlieCard and Charlie Ticket, which enabled the three to give out free rides on the Boston subway system.

Even though the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), a high-tech civil rights group, rushed at the chance of defending the students in court, calling the court’s restraint unconstitutional and extremely unnecessary, the decision seemed to demand no second thoughts from the authorities.

"The students have done everything they need to do and more, and still they don't have their free-speech rights," said EFF spokeswoman Rebecca Jeschke, as quoted by the Associated Press, adding that the group will surely appeal the decision.

The transit agency’s representatives stated that they are pleased with the ruling and even though they are disappointed by the defendants’ persistence, they hope the students will be cooperative.