Monthly Archives: July 2011

It’s not ‘hacking’ if you guess someone’s PIN

Posted on July 19, 2011 by Phil

I do wish people would stop giving hackers and hacking a bad name. Hackers, in my experience, are extremely competent people who often have a pretty acute if not always ‘comfortable’ or mainstream sense of ethics. Unlike ‘script kiddies’, certain … Continue reading →

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Facebook in MySQL hell

Posted on July 11, 2011 by Phil

I like MySQL. I like Open Source. But one has to be realistic about their limitations. Blind faith is dangerous in all contexts. And, while I’m not above allowing myself a grim smile when the bad guys end up shooting … Continue reading →

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In the interests of fairness…

Posted on July 11, 2011 by Phil

…I thought I’d just express my deep pissed-offedness at the other two of the ‘big three’ and their recent moves to arbitrarily transition people using ‘free’ services, via variance of T&Cs, into their various (proto-)internet identity authority ‘offerings’. (And if … Continue reading →

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Rank hypocrisy and smoking guns

Posted on July 11, 2011 by Phil

Thanks to David Moss, by way of James Baker, for prompting me to re-read ‘What Price Privacy?’ [1.3 MB PDF] and its follow-up, ‘What Price Privacy Now?’ [988 KB PDF] – two reports on the illegal trade in personal information, … Continue reading →

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Don’t forget the big picture!

Posted on July 8, 2011 by Phil

Despite all the outcry about NOTW and the systemic corruption it implies – encompassing not just the Murdoch empire but elements of the police, the press and the political establishment – one should not forget that the ‘phone hacking’ scandal … Continue reading →

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