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>C O M P U T E R U N D E R G R O U N D<
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>D I G E S T<
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*** Volume 1, Issue #1.06 (April 27, 1990) **
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****************************************************************************
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MODERATORS: Jim Thomas / Gordon Meyer
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REPLY TO: TK0JUT2@NIU.bitnet
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COMPUTER UNDERGROUND DIGEST is an open forum dedicated to sharing
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information among computerists and to the presentation and debate of
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diverse views.
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--------------------------------------------------------------------
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DISCLAIMER: The views represented herein do not necessarily represent the
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views of the moderators. Contributors assume all responsibility
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for assuring that articles submitted do not violate copyright
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protections.
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--------------------------------------------------------------------
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In This Issue:
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File 1: Moderators' Corner (news and notes)
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File 2: Lists *CAN* Get You Listed!
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File 3: Legion of Doom (Austin / Chicago) Update (27 April)
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File 4: Review of THE CUCKOO'S EGG
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File 5: SMTP Hints
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--------------------------------------------------------------------
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***************************************************************
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*** Computer Underground Digest Issue #1.06 / File 1 of 5 ***
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***************************************************************
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In this file:
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-- Call for Articles
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-- More Crackdowns?
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-- LoD Rumors
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--------------------------------------------------------------
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-----------
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Call for Articles
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------------
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It's the busy time of the term, but we're hoping people will send more
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articles on various topics. In this issue we review Clifford Stoll's THE
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CUCKOO'S EGG, and we'd like to get some pro or con responses on the book,
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as well as publish a few more articles on it from various perspectives.
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In a previous issue of C-u-D, a typo slipped by: THERE ARE ONLY THREE
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issues of LoD Technical Journal. The fourth was in progress. Most of those
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files were destroyed, but if anybody received any advance drafts or has any
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of those files laying around, please send them. They would be a nifty
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addition to the archives, and we're hoping that issue is not lost forever.
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SO--send those articles in!
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-------------------
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More Crackdowns?
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-------------------
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The computer underground isn't the only target of enforcement or
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legislative crackdowns. The CHICAGO TRIBUNE (April 20) reports two more
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"crimes" that can result either in heavy penalties or in confiscation of
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possessions.
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In Illinois, a law is being considered that would make it a felony to give
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*ANY* minor a drink of alcohol. On the suface, this seems a reasonable law,
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but it also outlaws parents allowing their 20-year old offspring a sip of
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wine under their supervision in the privacy of their home or a sip of wine
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at private religious ceremony at home. The penalty is THREE YEARS IN PRISON
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AND A FINE OF UP TO $10,000! (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, April 20, p. II-1).
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In Wisconsin, "the governor signed a law authorizing authorities to seize
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and sell cars used in prostitution crimes, a measure aimed at increasing
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the pressure on customers" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, April 20, p. I-3).
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Laws originally used to fight drugs and racketeering are being expanded to
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criminalize and punish in ways not originally intended. We seem to be
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living in a time when special interest groups (and not so special interest
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groups) are attempting to criminalize all those behaviors to which they
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object and impose potentially cruel and unusual punishments, or at least
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extreme punishments. It's hard to be sympathetic toward a drug pusher, so
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when harsh laws were passed, few objected. But, now those laws are being
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expanded and the confiscation of personal property seems to be in vogue.
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Isn't it time to "JUST SAY NO!?"
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---------------
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LoD Rumors
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---------------
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Some of the most outlandish rumors have come to us about the LoD events. We
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have heard that some are in jail, some have been indicted for treason, that
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Mentor was awoken with a shotgun at his head...the list goes on. We have
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reprinted the events as they occured in previous issues, and will keep
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subscribers up to date. The sources for our information include
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participants on both sides of the case, and despite the predictable slants
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each side may have, the facts are consistent, so we consider the
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information accurate. So, c'mon--tell others to quit spreading rumors!
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=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+
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+ END THIS FILE +
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+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+===+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=
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***************************************************************
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*** Computer Underground Digest Issue #1.06 / File 2 of 5 ***
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***************************************************************
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Date: Sun, 22 Apr 90 19:31:22 PDT
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From: "S.S.D.D." <brewer@@portal.com>
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To: tk0jut2%niu.bitnet@uicvm.uic.edu
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Subject: RE: CuD #1.01
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Regarding Marks' comments about being on a mailing list triggering
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harassing action, I have experience showing it happens.
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Back in about 1970, in my misspent youth, I subscribed to a little-known
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newsletter called "The Tel Line". This was a phreak magazine that was
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published in Southern Cal somewhere, and was a precursor to most of the
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P/hack digests that exist today. Included was the normal blue box/ loop
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line generalized phreaking stuff that was very active at the time. (BTW:
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2600 magazine had a short article on this magazine back in 88 or so).
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...anyway, I remember getting an issue in which the editorial talked about
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the publishers getting heat from Bell Tel, and being asked to turn over
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their subscription list to the "authorities". I never received another
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issue, but shortly after that, I (and my parents!!!) began receiving
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threatening phone calls and letters from Pac Bell, claiming I was involved
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in red box activity. Knowing what I know now, I should have told those
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"authorities" where to pack it, but at 14 or so, I was a bit nervous!
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Anyway at that time I had had no other contacts with the phreak world, and
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my experience was limited to dialing 100's of 800 numbers and dialing thru
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local exchanges looking for test numbers, ringbacks etc. This local
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experimentation was in the Mountain Bell region and had nothing to do with
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either red boxes or Pac Bell. Anyway, it was obvious that the phone cops
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had gotten hold of the mailing list.
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Since this happened back in the neolithic era (pre-PC's! And my parents
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only bought rotary service... sore fingers!!_) I'm sure that the state of
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the art of intelligence gathering by "the authorities" has advanced quite
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a bit, and I am sure that there are a few corporate security subscribers
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out there taking names.
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Hell if I care! Give 'em 1000's of names! Keep 'em busy! But be aware that
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"Big Brother" does indeed listen!
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/john
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=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+
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+ END THIS FILE +
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+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+===+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=
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***************************************************************
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*** Computer Underground Digest Issue #1.06 / File 3 of 5 ***
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***************************************************************
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** STOP HACKING! IT'S NOT WORTH THE TROUBLE. FIND ANOTHER HOBBY! **"
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(The Mentor)
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On March 1, the Secret Service and other law enforcement officers in
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Austin, Texas, raided the home of The Mentor and the offices of Steve
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Jackson Games searching for evidence related to computer hacking. As of
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this writing (April 25), there have been no indictments brought against any
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of the Austin group alleged by federal law enforcement officials to be
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participants in the Legion of Doom. According to one inside source, "we are
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just floating in limbo." Another close source indicated that none of the
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equipment confiscated from The Mentor or Erik Bloodaxe has been returned.
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Equipment confiscated from Steve Jackson games, producer of fantasy
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role-playing adventure games, has also not been returned. One source
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inside SJG indicated that a few files have been returned, but that they had
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lost all value or utility by the time they were returned. An accurate and
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balanced NEWSWEEK story ("The Hacker Dragnet," by John Schwartz, April 20,
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1990: p. 50) indicated that:
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Jackson had to push back his deadlines for producing other
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games, cut back on his plans for new releases and lay off
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half of his staff. He puts the out-of-pocket losses at
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$25,000 and owes about $75,000 more.
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One of those who had over $5,000 worth of equipment removed indicated that
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he was losing over $1,000 a week in lost income by not being able to work
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at home. Also confiscated were the graduate papers of his wife (stored on
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the hard drive) and other files related to education.
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There are unconfirmed rumors that federal officials have indicated action
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will be taken within a month, but that this action could range from an
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indictment to the return of the equipment with an apology.
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At least two others in the Austin area had their equipment confiscated in
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raids. A week earlier, one person who was "just in the wrong place at the
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wrong time" lost over $30,000 worth of computer hardware, and another had
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his equipment confiscated.
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As for Knight Lightning's case in Chicago, A motion is pending in Federal
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Court.. The gov't has asked for a continuance. No developments are
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expected until mid to late May. If anything happens we'll let folks know,
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if rumours are floating around let us know so we can confirm/deny them.
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The docket number for the case is:
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90-CR-0070
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One of the counts in the federal charges filed by William Cook, Assistant
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United States Attorney William J. Cook contends that E911 material was
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stolen and published in PHRACK which could have been used to disrupt
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emergency services (see Schwartz's NEWSWEEK article and the indictment in
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Cu-D #1.00). We have read and re-read the E911 material published in
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PHRACK, and there is virtually nothing in it that reveals any sensitive
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information of any kind about the E911 or any other system. The published
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material is little more than definitions of terms, and is, by any
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reasonable standard, totally worthless as a "how to" document. We have been
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advised not to circulate the material for legal reasons, but if and when we
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are advised that it is legally permissible, we will re-print it so others
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can make an independent judgment.
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We recommend John Schwartz's NEWSWEEK article. He nicely identifies the
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danger of the current witch hunt for hackers, especially the LoD. As those
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familiar with the computer underground know, the LoD is hardly a monolithic
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fraternity of terrorists or "high tech street gangs," as Bill Cook once
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called hackers. They were a loose group of people on communication with one
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another largely for the purpose of sharing information. Contrary to media
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and law enforcement reports, our own independent evidence from LoD members
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or from alleged targets of their activities indicates that there was no
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organized group effort to terrorize, extort, or to engage in any of the
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felonious activities to which their critics allude. It is our professional
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judgment that the name has been symbolized for enforcement purposes, and
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those associated with that name are being targeted regardless of whether
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evidence exists of their wrong doing.
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We agree with sysop Al Evans (quoted in NEWSWEEK, April 30: p. 50):
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Given a choice between hackers and police crackdowns,
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%Al Evans% knows which he prefers: "The threat of somebody
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knocking on my door at 5:30 in the morning is the one that
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makes ME worry."
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=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+
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+ END THIS FILE +
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+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+===+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=
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***************************************************************
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*** Computer Underground Digest Issue #1.06 / File 4 of 5 ***
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***************************************************************
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Review of:
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THE CUCKOO'S EGG: TRACKING A SPY THROUGH THE MAZE OF COMPUTER ESPIONAGE.
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by Clifford Stoll. New York: Doubleday; 326 pp.
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Reviewed by Jim Thomas, Northern Illinois University
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23 April, 1990
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Ah, shucks, Clifford Stoll is just a regular guy, like, ya know? He likes
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the Grateful Dead, eats bagels, tries to get out of work, doesn't like the
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FBI, cheers the monsters in GODZILLA VERSUS MONSTER ZERO, and, gee, wants
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his friends to think he's politically correct. His tennies even squish
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when they're wet. Just "good ol' Cliff," a self-styled former hippy with
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long hair who apparently doesn't know that Hippy died before he could
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possibly have been one. But, no matter. Cliff just wants to re-assure us
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that he's not such a bad guy.
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But, Clifford Stoll grew up. He says so. Chasing those nasty hackers via
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modem and a slew of computers made him see the error of his ways. Those
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nasty perpetrators (he prefers "varmint," "eggsucker," "skunk," "louse,"
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"bastard," and he's oh, so clever in translating bureaucratic-speak into
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Cliffspeak (p. 256-257)).
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THE CUCKOO'S EGG is a book of ironies: An amoral moralist produces a
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diatribe against hackers that is perhaps the best hacking primer for
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novices around. Although taking swipes against law enforcement agents at
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every opportunity, Stoll nonetheless assumes the role of Kafka's Joseph K. in
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acquiescing to those he seems to loath. In protecting the public by
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tracking down an alleged spy, he subverts the public trust by distorting
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his topic and inexcusably glossing over the complexity of issues. He is a
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scientist by profession while ignoring the factual precision of his craft
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in his writing.
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For all the posturing and moralizing, Stoll produced a compelling mystery
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of sorts. A hacker has broken into the University of California/Berkeley's
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system, and only a minor error gave him away. Stoll notices the error and
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alerts his superiors who begrudgingly allow him to track down the culprit.
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Any computer undergrounder can identify with and appreciate Stoll's
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obsession and patience in attempting to trace the hacker through a maze of
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international gateways and computer systems. But, Stoll apparently misses
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the obvious affinity he has with those he condemns. He simply dismisses
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hackers as "monsters" and displays virtually no recognition of the
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similarities between his own activity and those of the computer
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underground. This is what makes Stoll's work so dangerous: His work is an
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unreflective exercise in self-promotion, a tome that divides the sacred
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world of technocrats from the profane activities of those who would
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challenge it; Stoll stigmatizes without understanding.
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Stoll's work is irresponsible because his image of the world reminds us of
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a simpler time, one where everything sprang from either the forces of light
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or of darkness. Hackers are bad: They trash things, are immature, should
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be punished, and threaten the foundations of hi-tech civilization as we
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know it. Stoll, on the other hand, is good: He hates hackers, single
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handedly saved civilization from the modem-macho demons, and fought the
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good fight as any true he-man would. God help the hacker when Clifford
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Stoll gets angry: "It was him against me now. For real" (p. 106).
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Stoll's disdain for hackers' alleged violations of privacy hardly stood in
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the way of his own activities, but, for a good obsession, one that's "for
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real," what can a few violations of his own hurt? God forbid that hackers
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monitor others' communications. Stoll, however, suffered only the briefest
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of qualms when he himself monitors them. But, his "sweetheart Martha," a
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law student, absolved him of any ethical violations:
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"'Look,' she mumbled, burning the roof of her mouth on the
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vulcanized mozzarella. 'You're not the government, so you don't
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need a search warrant. THE WORST IT WOULD BE IS AN INVASION OF
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PRIVACY %emphasis added%. And people dialing up a computer
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PROBABLY HAVE NO RIGHT TO INSIST THAT THE SYSTEM'S OWNER NOT LOOK
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OVER THEIR SHOULDER %emphasis added%. So I don't see why you
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can't.'
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So with a clear conscience, I started building a monitoring
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system" (p. 20).
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Why be bothered that he neither is the owner of the system nor, according
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to his continual complaining, possesses the authorization to monitor from
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his superiors. He has been self-absolved and can proceed with a clear
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conscience, and proceed he does--with a vengeance.
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Stoll "borrows," without authorization, "thirty or forty monitors" by
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"liberating personal computers from secretaries' desks." No big deal.
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"THERE'D BE HELL TO PAY ON MONDAY, BUT IT'S EASIER TO GIVE AN APOLOGY THAN
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GET PERMISSION" (p. 22, emphasis added).
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How does Stoll's excitement for learning about phone traces (p. 30) differ
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from the typical hacker's? How do his own efforts in phone traces differ
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from a phreak's? Like any good p/hacker, he enlists allies to feed him
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information, and then uses that information. The difference is that Stoll
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is on a mission. For Real. And what are a few indiscretions to a man on a
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mission?
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"I worried about how the hacker might abuse our network
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connections over the weekend. Rather than camping out in the
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computer room, I pulled the plugs to all the networks. To
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cover my tracks, I posted a greeting for every user logging
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in: 'Due to building construction, all networks are down
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until Monday.' It wold surely isolate the hacker from the
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Milnet. By counting complaints, I could take a census of
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how many people relied on this network.
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Quite a few, it turned out. Enough to get me into trouble."
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Complaints led to a request for Stoll to look into the "problem."
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"It took five minutes to patch the network through. The boss
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thought I'd done magic. I kept my mouth shut" (p. 88).
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Stoll's depiction of hackers as emerging from the slime of some primordial
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ethical muck for engaging in behaviors that he himself relishes is
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bothersome. It is this immoralism that makes the work so dangerous. Stoll
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has found a way to play the hacking game without suffering the risks to
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which hackers are subject. Some might call this cowardly. To assure that
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the reader understands the difference between "white deviance" and "black
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deviance," he goes to great pains to establish considerable distance
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between himself and those he criticizes in a ploy similar to historical
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witch hunts. Witch hunts begin when the targets are labelled as "other,"
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as something quite different from normal people. In Stoll's view, hackers,
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like witches, are creatures not quite like the rest of us, and his
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repetitious use of such pejorative terms as "rats," "monsters," "vandals,"
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and "bastard" transforms the hacker into something less than human. This
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transformation contributes to the hysteria of the media, legislators, and
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law enforcement agents who use such observations to justify the purge of
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the sacred temples from this techno-menace. After all, says Stoll, hackers
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aren't just bright kids:
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"They're technically skilled but ethically bankrupt programmers
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without any respect for others' work--or privacy. They're not
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destroying one or two programs. They're trying to wreck the
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cooperation that builds our networks" (p. 159).
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Stoll would never wreck "a wonderful playground for everybody else by
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putting razor blades in the sand," and analogy he uses to describe hackers
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in a recent NEWSWEEK article ("The Hacker Dragnet," NEWSWEEK, April 30,
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1990: p. 50). Or, if he did, he would just apologize on Monday morning!
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In a classic example of a degradation ritual, Stoll--through assertion and
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hyperbole rather than reasoned argument--has redefined the moral status of
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hackers into something menacing. The imagery he presents is not of normal
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people engaging in occasionally questionable activities, but of a demonic
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force intent on destroying the fabric of computer networks. His logic
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implies a pathological syllogism:
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a) Cancer is a disease and must be eradicated
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b) Hackers are a cancer of the techno-body
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c) THERFORE: Hackers must be eradicated.
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Such unchallenged logic has led to the flurry of anti-computer abuse laws,
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confiscation of equipment, a chilling effect on speech on BBSs,
|
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media fright stories, and to a public perception of hackers that
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seems--judging from existing data--quite unjustified. Stoll's lack of
|
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reflection on the SOCIAL MEANING and significance of the computer
|
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underground and his identification of ALL hacking activity with those of
|
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the dramatic and quite rare example of an alleged spy both distorts the
|
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nature of all computer underground activity and grossly over-estimates its
|
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danger. I call this dangerous because it is demagoguery of the worst sort:
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Under the guise of a story-telling narrative, it creates an imagery of a
|
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target population for control, but allows little room for debating the
|
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assertions and values that justify scapegoating on the other. Consider
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just a few of many examples.
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First, Stoll claims that hackers are a menace because they "trash"
|
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programs. True, some hackers may trash programs, just as some drivers use
|
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automobiles in bank robberies. But, Stoll ignores a primary tenet of the hacker
|
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ethic, which is "though shalt not trash!" The image presented in THE
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CUCKOO'S EGG ignores this, which obscures the respect that hackers
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generally have for the work of others.
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Second, Stoll believes hackers are a danger to computerized information
|
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processing:
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Information in databases? They've %hackers% no qualms, if they
|
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can figure out how to get it. Suppose it's a list of AIDS
|
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patients? Or your last year's income tax return? Or my credit
|
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history? (p 287).
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Even if hackers are able to obtain such information, they are scarcely the
|
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threat that Stoll claims. Hackers are not interested in credit histories,
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but in mastering computer technology. Yes, some individuals may illegally
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|
obtain such information, but these are not the breed of hackers about whom
|
|
Stoll writes. Further, the danger of misuse of personal information hardly
|
|
comes from hackers, but from those who claim authorized access to it and
|
|
use it for profit.
|
|
|
|
Third, Stoll compares hacking into computers with house invasion. Such a
|
|
comparison is dramatic but unconvincing. Even if we were to concede the
|
|
impropriety of accessing a university or corporate computer, which most
|
|
hackers target, this is hardly the same as forcibly entering one's home. A
|
|
better analogy might be to compare hacking with the person across the
|
|
street who focuses binoculars through the bedroom window of a copulating
|
|
couple, or, at worst, an independent entrepreneur who sets up an
|
|
unauthorized lemonade stand on the corner of a private yard. But, even if
|
|
I were to concede that hacking is akin to forcible entry, which I do not,
|
|
should it be criminalized? In England, trespass is a civil, not a criminal,
|
|
wrong, and it is up to the party to bring civil charges. Unfortunately,
|
|
computer technology is changing faster than the law is able to keep up with
|
|
it, and rather than seek new ways to deal with new problems, Stoll's logic
|
|
implies the simple continuation of the "law-'n-order" mentality.
|
|
|
|
Finally, Stoll believes that hackers destroy the community of computerists,
|
|
and "if that trust is broken, the community will vanish forever" (p. 288).
|
|
Dramatic? Yes. True? No. This threat to some imaginary commonweal would
|
|
seem a critical indictment if accurate, but most computer users do not
|
|
share a sense of community, or, if they do, some convincing data would be
|
|
helpful. Stoll's presumed empiricist bent when analyzing problems in his
|
|
own field of astronomy does not seen to carry over to his social commentary.
|
|
But, perhaps men on a mission need not worry about facts. In fact, being
|
|
unencumbered by data, Stoll the scientist seems particularly unrestrained
|
|
in his comments.
|
|
|
|
Stoll's work is disingenuous for several reasons. At the intellectual level,
|
|
it provides a persuasive, but simplistic, moral imagery of the nature of
|
|
right and wrong, and provides what--to a lay reader--would seem a
|
|
compelling justification for more statutes and severe penalties against the
|
|
computer underground. This is troublesome for two reasons. First, it leads
|
|
to a mentality of social control by law enforcement during a social phase
|
|
when some would argue we are already over-controlled. Second, it invokes a
|
|
punishment model that assumes we can stamp out behaviors to which we object
|
|
if only we apprehend and convict a sufficient number of violators. We
|
|
already have existing laws sufficient to prosecute those who destroy
|
|
private property, trespass, defraud, spy, or engage in many of those
|
|
activities by which Stoll stigmatizes hackers. We do not need more. In
|
|
addition, there is little evidence that punishment will in the long run
|
|
reduce any given offense, and the research of Gordon Meyer and I suggests
|
|
that criminalization may, in fact, contribute to the growth of the computer
|
|
underground.
|
|
|
|
The computer underground is a complex group comprised of many different
|
|
activities. One need not approve of these activities to recognize that, in
|
|
some ways, they constitute a resistance to the strains produced by an
|
|
increasingly centralized and inaccessible technology. Although I hesitate
|
|
to carry the analogy too far, participants in the computer underground can
|
|
at least in part be understood as a form of social resistance to the rapid
|
|
domination of technological knowledge production and the new forms of
|
|
control and social arrangements that it creates. Whether one agrees with
|
|
this this specific judgment or not, it is quite obvious that the computer
|
|
underground is a phenomenon far more complicated and rich than described in
|
|
THE CUCKOO'S EGG.
|
|
|
|
I have found that, when writing about hackers, there is always the inane
|
|
question: "Do you approve of hacking? Why do you defend them?" This, it
|
|
seems, strikes at the heart of the problem with Stoll's book: It is, at
|
|
root, a self-serving and ideological diatribe that condemns but provides no
|
|
understanding. To provide a balanced account of the computer underground
|
|
in 1990 is akin to what Stoll might have experienced if he studied
|
|
astronomy in seventeenth century Italy: Some issues are so beclouded by
|
|
public hysteria whipped up by obscurantists with a stake in promoting
|
|
ignorance that any account counter to the National Party Line is heretical.
|
|
Perhaps this is why Stoll took the easy path consistent with the dominant
|
|
law enforcement and media view. Or, perhaps Stoll really believes his
|
|
new-found maturity has transformed him from a pseudo-hippy into a model
|
|
citizen:
|
|
|
|
Omigod! Listening to myself talk like this, I realize that
|
|
I've become a grown up (sob!)--a person who REALLY HAS A STAKE
|
|
%original emphasis%. My graduate student mentality of earlier
|
|
days let me think of the world as just a research project: to be
|
|
studied, data extracted, patterns noted. Suddenly there are
|
|
conclusions to be drawn; conclusions that carry moral weight.
|
|
I guess I've come of age. (p 322).
|
|
|
|
One suspects that, had Stoll lived in the time of Galileo, he would have
|
|
told that troublesome astronomer to quit acting like a child and grow up.
|
|
|
|
The acknowledgments in the book list Stoll's e-mail address as:
|
|
CLIFF@cfa.harvard.edu
|
|
|
|
|
|
=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+
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|
+ END THIS FILE +
|
|
+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+===+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=
|
|
|
|
|
|
***************************************************************
|
|
*** Computer Underground Digest Issue #1.06 / File 5 of 5 ***
|
|
***************************************************************
|
|
|
|
Computer and system literacy improves our ability to send and receive
|
|
information across systems and to identity and resolve problems on our own
|
|
systems when they occur. We encourage people to submit "tricks and traps"
|
|
that others might find useful in their jobs or in simply becoming more
|
|
functionally adept on their system.
|
|
|
|
The following description of SMTP was submitted by The Parrot.
|
|
|
|
--------------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
Date: Thu, 26 Apr 90 00:43:25 -0400
|
|
From: (anonymity requested)
|
|
To: TK0JUT2%NIU.BITNET@UICVM.uic.edu
|
|
Subject: SMTP
|
|
|
|
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
A quick SMTP tutorial.
|
|
|
|
SMTP or simple mail transfer protocol is the method used by most internet
|
|
hosts to handle the transfer of mail across the internet. It is a wonderfully
|
|
simple system that handles everything in the easiest method possible. All
|
|
commands and text are transfered as text, so SMTP is easy to debug. The SMTP
|
|
port, which is listed in the services file in the etc directory, can be
|
|
connected to using known protocols such as tcp/ip. For debugging purposes, it
|
|
can be connected to using telnet. (eg. telnet host #of_smtp_port)
|
|
|
|
The commands are all text, and are listed, on request, by the SMTP server on the
|
|
remote machine. The main ones are: %comments are in curly braces%
|
|
|
|
Mail From: sender@host.net.domain.area %regular internet address%
|
|
RCPT To: recipient@host.net.domain.area
|
|
Data %to start typing text%
|
|
|
|
%body of message here... for format see RFC #822%
|
|
%from the RFC INDEX... %
|
|
%822 Crocker, D. Standard for the format of ARPA Internet text messages.
|
|
% 1982 August 13; 47 p. (Format: TXT=109200 bytes) (Obsoletes RFC 733;
|
|
% or look at an old mail message%
|
|
|
|
. %finish message with a period%
|
|
|
|
quit %to quit from connection%
|
|
|
|
Send mail is not intended as a user interface and should not be used as one.
|
|
One of the many mailers available (Elm, bin mail, mm, etc.) all offer an easy
|
|
interface between the user and SMTP.
|
|
|
|
Later.
|
|
The Parrot
|
|
00
|
|
)
|
|
|
|
=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+
|
|
+ END THIS FILE +
|
|
+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+===+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=
|
|
! |