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Should You Hire a Hacker?

Posted by CowboyNeal on from the old-tricks-or-fresh-starts dept.

fabioj writes "Business Week has an article about today's debate at the RSA Security Conference held at the Moscone Center attended by Kevin Mitnick and his 1995 trial prosecutor, Christopher Painter. Interesting to note that Painter doesn't see Kevin Mitnick's experiences as a deterrent for the 'up-and-coming technology workforce' to criminally hack."

3 of 647 comments (clear)

  1. Vocabulaire by Tiro · · Score: 4, Informative
    . . . DOJ attorney Christopher Painter, on the whether ex-hackers could be trusted as computer security professionals. Mitnick says hackers bring special skills to the job, while Painter says a criminal is a criminal."

    They're called crackers.

    Mitnick sounds like little more than a self-promoter to me.

  2. Re:hacker/cracker by stj · · Score: 3, Informative
    I looked up Webster Online and:
    From Jargon File (4.3.0, 30 APR 2001) (jargon)

    cracker n. One who breaks security on a system. Coined ca. 1985 by hackers in defense against journalistic misuse of {hacker} (q.v., sense 8).

    I think it's the shortest definition and the most accurate. And actually means that cracker and hacker are mutually exclusive.
    --
    iThink iHate iMod
  3. Re:A criminal is a criminal by RLiegh · · Score: 3, Informative

    Oh, and Billy Bob, I'm assuming is Bill Clinton?

    No. I meant Billy Bob Carter; Jimmy's brother and maker of Billy Beer.