4 ms·

Please expand? He was and is very smart. This is not disputed. He was 23 at the time. Not exactly a child. The worm was surprisingly elaborate containing thre

by lysace 1y ago

Please expand? He was and is very smart. This is not disputed. He was 23 at the time. Not exactly a child. The worm was surprisingly elaborate containing three separate remote exploits. It probably took a few weeks to build and test. So sabotaging thousands of at the time very expensive network connected computers was a very deliberate action. I posit that he likely did it to become famous and perhaps even successful, feeling safe with his dad’s position. And it worked. He did not end up in prison. He ended up cofounding Viaweb and YCombinator. Unironically a great role model for YC. :/

tptacek 1y ago
I'm not psychoanalyzing the guy, I'm saying I'm not surprised he had an elite academic career, because he's an elite performer.
- deleted 1y ago
  [deleted]
- lysace 1y ago
  [flagged]
  - tptacek 1y ago
    Hold on, I need to capture and circulate this claim that I'm a "very obvious leftist" to my friends and acquaintances. Thanks, this made my day.
    - dctoedt 1y ago
      > I need to capture and circulate this claim that I'm a "very obvious leftist" to my friends and acquaintances. s/leftist/Catholic/g; (in a good sense)
      - tptacek 1y ago
        I don't know how obvious my Catholicism is but my mom will be glad to hear that. :)
    - josh2600 1y ago
      Just gotta say that this thread really delivered in so many ways. Thank you for constantly removing some of the veils from the mystery of our computational universe. The notion that you’re a very obvious leftist seems asinine to anyone who has seen your comment history in these digital catacombs for the last decades.
  - DonHopkins 1y ago
    [flagged]
    - lysace 1y ago
      (Not USA:ian.) > Why are flattering tptacek? ?
  - defen 1y ago
    A felony conviction, three years probation, 400 hours of community service, and a $25,000 (inflation adjusted) fine for a novel non-violent crime with no personal material benefit isn't exactly "got away with it"
    - lysace 1y ago
      Yes, that is getting away with it for someone with means and clout.
      - defen 1y ago
        That's a values debate, I guess. What is the purpose of punishment? Is it to set an example to others, is it to remove a dangerous person from society, is it to prevent the criminal from reoffending, is it to satisfy society's desire to see wrongdoers punished? He didn't reoffend (as far as we know), and in fact went on to become a highly-contributing member of society. His crime was not so egregious that recompense was impossible even in principle. I don't see how a harsher punishment for him would have produced an obviously better outcome. I think it would be more productive to argue that people who commit similar crimes should receive similar punishments as this, rather than arguing that he should have received a harsher punishment.
        tptacek 1y ago
        I don't think this is as much about the purpose of punishment as it is about the monkeys with the grapes and the cucumbers.
      - chasd00 1y ago
        in those days computer crimes weren't punished that harshly. I'm surprised it was that severe, in fact, it sounds like there must have been some heavy hitters on the prosecution side.
        ls612 1y ago
        I think the story is that this was one of the first ever prosecutions under the CFAA and they quickly realized that the fact it had taken down so many systems was an accident (there was a bug in the replication code). The prosecution was mainly to establish precedent in an emerging field of law and technology.
  - tredre3 1y ago
    There's no need to "insult" people. What I'm seeing in his comments is just a successful tech bro admiring and defending a fellow tech bro, "boys will be boys" style. I don't think it has anything to do with politics.
    - tptacek 1y ago
      In this corner: leftist activist! And in this corner: successful tech bro!
    - deleted 1y ago
      [deleted]
    - deleted 1y ago
      [deleted]
  - ErroneousBosh 1y ago
    > very obvious leftist activist stance Is there something wrong with being a "leftist"?
    - deleted 1y ago
      [deleted]
    - deleted 1y ago
      [deleted]

by lysace 1y ago

tptacek 1y ago

I'm not psychoanalyzing the guy, I'm saying I'm not surprised he had an elite academic career, because he's an elite performer.

deleted 1y ago
[deleted]
lysace 1y ago
[flagged]
- tptacek 1y ago
  Hold on, I need to capture and circulate this claim that I'm a "very obvious leftist" to my friends and acquaintances. Thanks, this made my day.
  - dctoedt 1y ago
    > I need to capture and circulate this claim that I'm a "very obvious leftist" to my friends and acquaintances. s/leftist/Catholic/g; (in a good sense)
    - tptacek 1y ago
      I don't know how obvious my Catholicism is but my mom will be glad to hear that. :)
  - josh2600 1y ago
    Just gotta say that this thread really delivered in so many ways. Thank you for constantly removing some of the veils from the mystery of our computational universe. The notion that you’re a very obvious leftist seems asinine to anyone who has seen your comment history in these digital catacombs for the last decades.
- DonHopkins 1y ago
  [flagged]
  - lysace 1y ago
    (Not USA:ian.) > Why are flattering tptacek? ?
- defen 1y ago
  A felony conviction, three years probation, 400 hours of community service, and a $25,000 (inflation adjusted) fine for a novel non-violent crime with no personal material benefit isn't exactly "got away with it"
  - lysace 1y ago
    Yes, that is getting away with it for someone with means and clout.
    - defen 1y ago
      That's a values debate, I guess. What is the purpose of punishment? Is it to set an example to others, is it to remove a dangerous person from society, is it to prevent the criminal from reoffending, is it to satisfy society's desire to see wrongdoers punished? He didn't reoffend (as far as we know), and in fact went on to become a highly-contributing member of society. His crime was not so egregious that recompense was impossible even in principle. I don't see how a harsher punishment for him would have produced an obviously better outcome. I think it would be more productive to argue that people who commit similar crimes should receive similar punishments as this, rather than arguing that he should have received a harsher punishment.
      - tptacek 1y ago
        I don't think this is as much about the purpose of punishment as it is about the monkeys with the grapes and the cucumbers.
    - chasd00 1y ago
      in those days computer crimes weren't punished that harshly. I'm surprised it was that severe, in fact, it sounds like there must have been some heavy hitters on the prosecution side.
      - ls612 1y ago
        I think the story is that this was one of the first ever prosecutions under the CFAA and they quickly realized that the fact it had taken down so many systems was an accident (there was a bug in the replication code). The prosecution was mainly to establish precedent in an emerging field of law and technology.
- tredre3 1y ago
  There's no need to "insult" people. What I'm seeing in his comments is just a successful tech bro admiring and defending a fellow tech bro, "boys will be boys" style. I don't think it has anything to do with politics.
  - tptacek 1y ago
    In this corner: leftist activist! And in this corner: successful tech bro!
  - deleted 1y ago
    [deleted]
  - deleted 1y ago
    [deleted]
- ErroneousBosh 1y ago
  > very obvious leftist activist stance Is there something wrong with being a "leftist"?
  - deleted 1y ago
    [deleted]
  - deleted 1y ago
    [deleted]