Secret Subjects/Secret Subjects.iso/undergrd/vol_1/cud113d.txt

Text File | 1994-11-01 | 8KB | 138 lines

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                  >C O M P U T E R   U N D E R G R O U N D<
                                >D I G E S T<
               ***  Volume 1, Issue #1.13 (June 12, 1990)   **
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MODERATORS:   Jim Thomas / Gordon Meyer
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COMPUTER UNDERGROUND DIGEST is an open forum dedicated to sharing
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***  Computer Underground Digest Issue #1.13 / File 4 of 5  ***
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     *** CRITIQUE OF TELECOM DIGEST'S POSITON ON THE CURRENT BUSTS ***
                          (By Emmanuel Goldstein)


=====================
It's real disturbing to read the comments that have been posted recently on
Telecom Digest concerning Operation Sun Devil and Mitch Kapor's involvement.
While I think the moderator has been chastised sufficiently, there are still a
few remarks I want to make.

First of all, I understand the point he was trying to get across. But I think
he shot from the hip without rationalizing his point first, thereby leaving
many of us in a kind of stunned silence. If I understand it correctly, the
argument is: Kapor says he wants to help people that the moderator believes
are thieves. Therefore, using that logic, it's okay to steal from Kapor.

Well, I don't agree. Obviously, Kapor DOESN'T believe these people are
criminals. Even if one or two of them ARE criminals, he is concerned with all
of the innocent bystanders that are being victimized here. And make no mistake
about that - there are many innocent bystanders here. I've spoken to quite a
few of them. Steve Jackson, Craig Neidorf, the friends and families of people
who've had armed agents of the federal government storm into their homes and
offices. It's a very frightening scenario - one that I've been through myself.
And when it happens there are permanent scars and a fear that never quite
leaves. For drug dealers, murderers, hardened criminals, it's an acceptable
price in my view. But a 14 year old kid who doesn't know when to stop
exploring a computer system? Let's get real. Do we really want to mess up
someone's life just to send a message?

I've been a hacker for a good part of my life. Years ago, I was what you
would call an "active" hacker, that is, I wandered about on computer systems
and explored. Throughout it all, I knew it would be wrong to mess up data or
do something that would cause harm to a system. I was taught to respect
tangible objects; extending that to encompass intangible objects was not
very hard to do. And most, if not all, of the people I explored with felt
the same way. Nobody sold their knowledge. The only profit we got was an
education that far surpassed any computer class or manual.

Eventually, though, I was caught. But fortunately for me, the witch-hunt
mentality hadn't caught on yet. I cooperated with the authorities, explained
how the systems I used were flawed, and proved that there was no harm done. I
had to pay for the computer time I used and if I stayed out of trouble, I
would have no criminal record. They didn't crush my spirit. And the computers
I used became more secure. Except for the fear and intimidation that occurred
during my series of raids, I think I was dealt with fairly.

Now I publish a hacker magazine. And in a way, it's an extension of that
experience. The hackers are able to learn all about many different computer
and phone systems. And those running the systems, IF THEY ARE SMART, listen
to what is being said and learn valuable lessons before it's too late.
Because sooner or later, someone will figure out a way to get in. And you'd
better hope it's a hacker who can help you figure out ways to improve the
system and not an ex-employee with a monumental grudge.

In all fairness, I've been hacked myself. Someone figured out a way to break
the code for my answering machine once. Sure, I was angry. At the company.
They had no conception of what security was. I bought a new machine from a
different company, but not before letting a lot of people know EXACTLY what
happened. And I've had people figure out my calling card numbers. This gave
me firsthand knowledge of the ineptitude of the phone companies. And I used
to think they understood their own field! My point is: you're only a victim
if you refuse to learn. If I do something stupid like empty my china cabinet
on the front lawn and leave it there for three weeks, I don't think many
people will feel sympathetic if it doesn't quite work out. And I don't think
we should be sympathetic towards companies and organizations that obviously
don't know the first thing about security and very often are entrusted with
important data.

The oldest hacker analogy is the walking-in-through-the-front-door-and-
rummaging-through-my-personal-belongings one. I believe the moderator
recently asked a critic if he would leave his door unlocked so he could drop
in and rummage. The one fact that always seems to be missed with this
analogy is that an individual's belongings are just not interesting to
someone who simply wants to learn. But they ARE interesting to someone who
wants to steal. A big corporation's computer system is not interesting to
someone who wants to steal, UNLESS they have very specific knowledge as to
how to do this (which eliminates the hacker aspect). But that system is a
treasure trove for those interested in LEARNING. To those that insist on
using this old analogy, I say at least be consistent. You wouldn't threaten
somebody with 30 years in jail for taking something from a house. What's
especially ironic is that your personal belongings are probably much more
secure than the data in the nation's largest computer systems!

When you refer to hacking as "burglary and theft", as the moderator
frequently does, it becomes easy to think of these people as hardened
criminals. But it's just not the case. I don't know any burglars or
thieves, yet I hang out with an awful lot of hackers. It serves a definite
purpose to blur the distinction, just as pro-democracy demonstrators are
referred to as rioters by nervous leaders. Those who have staked a claim
in the industry fear that the hackers will reveal vulnerabilities in their
systems that they would just as soon forget about. It would have been very
easy for Mitch Kapor to join the bandwagon on this. The fact that he
didn't tells me something about his character. And he's not the only one.

Since we published what was, to the best of my knowledge, the first pro-hacker
article on all of these raids, we've been startled by the intensity of the
feedback we've gotten. A lot of people are angry, upset, and frightened by
what the Secret Service is doing. They're speaking out and communicating their
outrage to other people who we could never have reached. And they've
apparently had these feelings for some time. Is this the anti-government bias
our moderator accused another writer of harboring? Hardly. This is America at
its finest.

Emmanuel Goldstein
Editor, 2600 Magazine - The Hacker Quarterly

[e-mail]     po box 752, middle island, ny 11953

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