According to this feature on computerbytesman expert Smith which mentions his interest in the anthrax case, “Mr. Smith” studied at North Carolina State toward at least one degree, so perhaps focus should shift at least temporarily to the other POI — George Smith (aka Dick Destiny) while we consider he is of the same age.
Kushner, David “Watching Those Who Watch Us,” IEEE Spectrum, IEEE Spectrum v. 39 no. 6 (June 2002) p. 67-8
Abstract: A profile of Richard M. Smith, who spends most of his time tracking down violations of digital privacy, is presented. A kind of Sherlock Holmes of software engineers, he has detected the author of the Melissa virus, the questionable data-gathering practices of RealNetworks and Microsoft, and is now investigating face recognition. His ultimate aim is to get computers to work as people expect them to, without techie baggage.