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If Hatch's senile fantasy of attack software is actually carried =
through, it will be a gift to the internet vandals who presently have to =
make do with homemade viruses and worms. Imagine what they would do =
with professionally developed malware; it would be like handing an Uzi =
to a toddler.
Once the attack program(s) were released into the wild, as it were, to =
do their dirty work, it would only be natural for hackers (as opposed to =
crackers) to reverse engineer them out of professional curiosity. And =
soon enough vandals would get hold of them and pandemonium would ensue =
on the internet. Imagine the lawsuits that the RIAA and others who =
developed the software would have to defend themselves against then. =
Talk about being hoist with one's own petard!
Obviously the best defense for existing computers is to invest in =
software which periodically makes full backups that can quickly restore =
your hard drive to a known good earlier state. And, of course, to =
support the development and use of alternative desktop operating systems =
such as Linux, and other software such as the Mozilla browser, because =
the attack software would most likely be developed with Windows in mind. =
The more diversity the attack software has to deal with, the less =
likely it would be to succeed in every case. If the RIAA has anything =
to say about it, future computers will be designed with a self-destruct =
which could be activated by software. Wouldn't that be fun.
On Wednesday, "Robert Bushman" commented that:
"Perhaps we should also start extending the "justifiable"
laws. He jaywalked in front of my car, so I ran
him over. Justifiable assault - he was breaking the
law and obstructing my lawful progress down the
motorway."
It's already been done; in Phoenix last week some guy used his Hummer as =
a weapon to run down and destroy a car with 3 people in it whom he =
claimed had robbed him. He probably won't be charged with anything even =
though he chased the car down, because the prosecutor knows he couldn't =
get a conviction.
-Christopher Bardin
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<P dir=3Dltr>If Hatch's senile fantasy of attack software is actually =
carried=20
through, it will be a gift to the internet vandals who presently have to =
make do=20
with homemade viruses and worms. Imagine what they would do with=20
professionally developed malware; it would be like handing an Uzi =
to a=20
toddler.</P>
<P dir=3Dltr>Once the attack program(s) were released into the wild, as =
it were,=20
to do their dirty work, it would only be natural for hackers (as opposed =
to=20
crackers) to reverse engineer them out of professional =
curiosity. And=20
soon enough vandals would get hold of them and pandemonium=20
would ensue on the internet. Imagine the lawsuits that the =
RIAA and=20
others who developed the software would have to defend themselves =
against=20
then. Talk about being hoist with one's own petard!</P>
<P dir=3Dltr>Obviously the best defense for existing computers is =
to invest=20
in software which periodically makes full backups that can =
quickly restore=20
your hard drive to a known good earlier state. And, of course, to =
support=20
the development and use of alternative desktop operating systems such as =
Linux, and other software such as the Mozilla browser, because the =
attack=20
software would most likely be developed with Windows in =
mind. =20
The more diversity the attack software has to deal with, the less likely =
it=20
would be to succeed in every case. If the RIAA has anything to say =
about=20
it, future computers will be designed with a self-destruct which could =
be=20
activated by software. Wouldn't that be fun.</P>
<P dir=3Dltr>On Wednesday, <FONT face=3DVerdana size=3D2><FONT=20
face=3D"Comic Sans MS">"Robert Bushman"</FONT> <FONT=20
face=3D"Comic Sans MS">comm</FONT></FONT>ented that:</P>
<BLOCKQUOTE dir=3Dltr style=3D"MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<P dir=3Dltr><FONT size=3D4>"Perhaps we should also start extending =
the=20
"justifiable"<BR>laws. He jaywalked in front of my car, so I =
ran<BR>him=20
over. Justifiable assault - he was breaking the<BR>law and =
obstructing=20
my lawful progress down the<BR>motorway."</P></BLOCKQUOTE></FONT>
<P dir=3Dltr><FONT size=3D4>It's already been done; in Phoenix last week =
some guy=20
used his Hummer as a weapon to run down and destroy a car with 3 people =
in it=20
whom he claimed had robbed him. He probably won't be charged with =
anything=20
even though he chased the car down, because the prosecutor knows he =
couldn't get=20
a conviction.</FONT></P>
<P dir=3Dltr><FONT size=3D4>-Christopher Bardin</P></FONT></BODY></HTML>
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