Appropriate punishments for hackers

[Dave Farber <dave () farber net>]

> Date: Sat, 30 Aug 2003 09:13:55 -0700
> From: Lauren Weinstein <lauren () vortex com>
> Subject: Appropriate punishments for hackers
> To: dave () farber net
> Cc: lauren () vortex com
>
> > I have less of a problem with house detention than the original author but
> > strongly believe the book should get thrown at him unless there are mental
> > problems. I, for one, am getting tired of seeing the net attacked for fun.
> > Dave [Farber]
>
> Dave,
>
> I've been dealing with the massive hassles of the latest hacking attempts
> along with everyone else, but I'm still going to take an unpopular viewpoint
> here.  I am most certainly not an apologist for hackers, but I have long
> asserted, and would continue to argue, that this is a much more complex
> situation than with "ordinary" crimes.
>
> In essence, we've created a computing and network environment with the
> equivalent of big red flashing "DO NOT PUSH" buttons all over the place out
> in public, and then we act surprised and upset when bright, under-guided,
> bored kids push them.  That those buttons unleash such expensive
> consequences speaks mainly to inanity of the environment we've created --
> and the important applications we've inappropriately deployed in that
> environment -- and much less about the kids who push the "buttons."
>
> We see this pattern again and again.  Teenagers hacking the gaping holes in
> these systems, with no attempt at financial gain, and often little if any
> effort to even really hide their identities.  That they don't understand the
> seriousness of their actions in many cases is clear -- schools and parents
> must take a significant share of that blame by definition.  But will
> "throwing the book" at these offenders really deter such events?  Maybe some,
> but there will always be those youths who will treate the environment as a
> challenge, and in its abysmal security condition that's all it will take to
> ensure a continuing array of hacking problems.
>
> Not all hackers are created equal of course.  They range from adults out for
> financial gain -- basically hi-tech common criminals -- to the theoretical
> risks of cyberterrorists (which I personally consider to be an overblown
> straw man in many cases) all the way down to the kinds of kids who release
> these worms and viruses but have nothing to gain but the same kind of
> emotional "satisfaction" that similar youths got from phone phreaking
> decades ago.
>
> All hacking needs to be dealt with appropriately, but the key word is
> *appropriately*.  I for one am glad to see a reasoned response so far
> (house arrest) in the current case.  This is a positive change from the
> usual tendency of law enforcement in this country to try demonstrate their
> "toughness" by parading non-violent offenders around in shackles.
>
> Hackers need to be held accountable.  But all of us who have built this
> marvel of computing technology, this delicate networking house of cards held
> together behind the scenes with the software equivalent of bent
> paper clips and duct tape, also bear responsibility.
>
> The PFIR Statement on Hacking ( http://www.pfir.org/statements/hacking ),
> which I wrote several years ago, still seems directly applicable.
>
> Thanks much.
>
> --Lauren--
> Lauren Weinstein
> lauren () pfir org or lauren () vortex com or lauren () privacyforum org
> http://www.pfir.org/lauren
> Tel: +1 (818) 225-2800
> Co-Founder, PFIR - People For Internet Responsibility - http://www.pfir.org
> Co-Founder, Fact Squad - http://www.factsquad.org
> Co-Founder, URIICA - Union for Representative International Internet
>                      Cooperation and Analysis - http://www.uriica.org
> Moderator, PRIVACY Forum - http://www.vortex.com
> Member, ACM Committee on Computers and Public Policy

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