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That was really long, but actually quite interesting. It seems as though he could have disappeared if he hadn't been quit so sloppy. Plus, he did a few things d

That was really long, but actually quite interesting. It seems as though he could have disappeared if he hadn't been quit so sloppy. Plus, he did a few things deliberately to leave hints. So, if this were a matter of life and death instead of just a game, he probably could've vanished.

mquander 17y ago
I agree; it sounds like it was actually so easy for him (after taking the time to exercise appropriate precautions) that he felt he had to make it more interesting by purposefully leaving hints and doing the "challenges."
ams6110 17y ago
Yeah he was caught basically because he was still using twitter, Facebook, etc. under his new identity. If he had really "dropped off the net" it's unlikely he would have been traced.
- memetichazard 17y ago
  Maybe, maybe not. At least once, being on the net allowed him to see that he was close to being caught. Also, he did make use of it to throw off pursuers. Really, though, it wasn't that he shouldn't have been using twitter. Facebook, etc., it was just that he had gotten a bit too cocky and a bit too sloppy.
- stcredzero 17y ago
  Instead of using a stationary relay machine in Las Vegas, he should have used a laptop connected to a mobile broadband card. That would have been quite difficult to trace. Even if you can get the IP address of one of those cards, you still only have a vague idea of where it is. If you are the law, then how do you approach the judge to get a search warrant? You have no address to ask for a search of! You can buy such a mobile card in one part of the country, then carry it with you to another, so no useful address need be attached to it. What's more, you can arrange to have such a machine mailed to a different location across the country. In one day, for the price of a Fedex, your relay is in a different state.
  - joezydeco 17y ago
    From page 4: "On board, I staked out the bus’s backseat, where I could use my laptop without anyone looking over my shoulder. With a $150 wireless broadband card from Virgin Mobile, the only nationwide service that didn’t require a credit check, I had almost uninterrupted online access."
    - stcredzero 17y ago
      Yes, but that was the machine on hand and not the relay. Before having someone read more carefully, be sure that you have read them carefully.
- adamc 17y ago
  I agree, although it isn't so much that he was using the net per se -- he was caught because he couldn't stop following his own case. But that is probably typical.
  - enjo 17y ago
    It's actually amazingly common. I don't remember the specifics, but I saw a really interesting story about this. Whenever someone disappears, investigators will immediately setup various internet honey-pots. Apparently the vanished, very often, simply can't stop checking in on their old selves. Including folks wanted for very serious crimes.
wglb 17y ago
But it sounds like part of the deal was that he would have an online presence.

mquander 17y ago

I agree; it sounds like it was actually so easy for him (after taking the time to exercise appropriate precautions) that he felt he had to make it more interesting by purposefully leaving hints and doing the "challenges."

ams6110 17y ago

Yeah he was caught basically because he was still using twitter, Facebook, etc. under his new identity. If he had really "dropped off the net" it's unlikely he would have been traced.

memetichazard 17y ago
Maybe, maybe not. At least once, being on the net allowed him to see that he was close to being caught. Also, he did make use of it to throw off pursuers. Really, though, it wasn't that he shouldn't have been using twitter. Facebook, etc., it was just that he had gotten a bit too cocky and a bit too sloppy.
stcredzero 17y ago
Instead of using a stationary relay machine in Las Vegas, he should have used a laptop connected to a mobile broadband card. That would have been quite difficult to trace. Even if you can get the IP address of one of those cards, you still only have a vague idea of where it is. If you are the law, then how do you approach the judge to get a search warrant? You have no address to ask for a search of! You can buy such a mobile card in one part of the country, then carry it with you to another, so no useful address need be attached to it. What's more, you can arrange to have such a machine mailed to a different location across the country. In one day, for the price of a Fedex, your relay is in a different state.
- joezydeco 17y ago
  From page 4: "On board, I staked out the bus’s backseat, where I could use my laptop without anyone looking over my shoulder. With a $150 wireless broadband card from Virgin Mobile, the only nationwide service that didn’t require a credit check, I had almost uninterrupted online access."
  - stcredzero 17y ago
    Yes, but that was the machine on hand and not the relay. Before having someone read more carefully, be sure that you have read them carefully.
adamc 17y ago
I agree, although it isn't so much that he was using the net per se -- he was caught because he couldn't stop following his own case. But that is probably typical.
- enjo 17y ago
  It's actually amazingly common. I don't remember the specifics, but I saw a really interesting story about this. Whenever someone disappears, investigators will immediately setup various internet honey-pots. Apparently the vanished, very often, simply can't stop checking in on their old selves. Including folks wanted for very serious crimes.

wglb 17y ago

But it sounds like part of the deal was that he would have an online presence.