Michael Gracie

A kid was busted for hacking into Venezuelan government websites and posting silly mockups of these two guys:

- Hugo “I openly hate the US and I can because I’m a member of OPEC but I have a secret crush on Pat Robertson” Chavez,

and..

- Fidel “I mock the US but I don’t hate them because of all the rich tourists from Miami coming in and buying my overpriced cigars” Castro.

When it comes to hacking the US Government, it’s a lot more serious.

It’s winner take all if you can get in.

Not a job, but close.

A month until elections. Republicans getting hacked.

No surprises there.

The Chinese are to blame.

I wonder why the Chinese would want to hack our COMMERCE department? The Defense Department, maybe. The FDA, could be. The Dept. of the Treasury, sure. But the Commerce Department?

Maybe they are tired of their jobs, or maybe they just are hacking using all those Commerce Department laptops and the government just thinks they are getting hacked.

Two Cal State Northridge students were caught hacking into a professor’s computer, changing grades, and ordering magazines, CDs, and pizzas under the professor’s name.

I’d say the pizza delivery bit is kind of ironic. I would have loved to have been the professor, getting all that free pizza (he wasn’t charged). I also suspect the students in question are going to see it that way, because their likeliest career option, post fines and jail, are going to be that of pizza delivery persons.

There is a new plan afoot in the UK to deal with spammer and hackers - ban them from the internet.

The problem is a technological one, but now it is a political one. Next thing you know, companies will be getting fines for not having anti-spam measures on their email servers. While they’re at it, why not indict Microsoft for making an operating system that is weak on security (or offering even offering a release date for their next insecure product)? Not going to happen, but it wouldn’t surprise me if someone tried.

The biggest issues with banning a suspected spammer/hacker from the internet are 1) they are only accused, not found guilty of; 2) that in the age of anonymity, we will likely see a lot of false accusations as a result of header manipulation, IP spoofing, and other such technological means that juries have a hard time grasping; and 3) enforcement - it took years for the Feds to catch this guy - no law enforcement agency going to be able to keep up with the flood of “suspects” when Pandora’s Box is opened.

No. It probably will happen. Send the bill to the taxpayers.

The US State Department confirmed it had been victim of a hack, but that isn’t the news here, as far as I’m concerned. It’s all the doublespeak.

First they say they’ve been broken into, then they say they are investigating computer ‘anomalies’. It’s not a virus, that much is sure, according to the report. Well let’s just breath a sigh of relief.

“While our investigation continues, there is no indication that any sensitive U.S. government information was compromised,” noted Nancy Beck.

We got ya’ Nancy.

U.S. State Department Talking Points for July 12:

1) We were hacked. It was the Chinese North Koreans (note..mention the missle thing if anyone blinks).
2) We found a laptop on a truck.
3) We found some ‘anomalies’
4) This is not a virus (note..the citizenry understands the word “virus”)
5) REPEAT
6) SHRED TALKING POINTS

Joseph Thomas Colon purportedly received downline approval to hack into FBI databases, and now awaits sentencing for his success. While the acquisition of internal passwords and initial access points is still the subject of debate, the fact that the government is not alleging the attempts were made to harm national security, as well as prosecutor’s labeling of the intrusions as “curiosity hacks,” would lead some to believe there is more to the story.

Mr. Colon plead guilty, the FBI claims it has instituted new security measures, the band has entered into confidentiality agreements, Mr. Colon has been accused of this before, and it seems the hacks could have been orchestrated by a sixteen year old script kiddie.

More to Mr. Colon’s past? An undercover job in his future? Or just an outstanding embarrassment that needs sweeping under the rug?

***UPDATE***

It is sounding like brooms to me.

***UPDATE 2***

Mr. Colon gets six months home detention, a sentence more suitable for someone who embarrassed the government than threatened national security.

As if you didn’t have enough to worry about with respect to computer security, now your printer might be a risk.

Ironically, printers spit out paper - maybe some should just go back TO paper, just without the printer.

These types of announcements are probably getting on your nerves by now - someday I will quit covering the subject. This week’s education hack victim, The University of Colorado, Colorado Springs campus.

Sounds like I popped off too soon on that whole “taking things seriously” blurb. Then again, maybe the perpetrater was the latest hacking contest winner? Or forgot the contest dates, and will soon come forward to claim their prize?