Antikythera Mechanism: The Ancient Computer Found

Recently I found an article linked from iflscience on my Facebook feed saying that an ancient computer had been found in a shipwreck.  After reading this article I learned that this ancient computer was name the Antikythera Mechanism and was probably traveling with an important woman who was traveling to Rome to be married.  This, along with the other valuables were probably destined to be a wedding present.

This computer was made out of bronze.  It is very thin, mounted in a wooden frame, with a couple thousand characters inscribed in it.  It was thought to have the ability to predict the movement of constellations.  Through X-rays, scientist have discovered there are over 30 gears.  This is all very impressive considering it was estimated to have been created around 87 B.C.

Ingress Across the Globe

Ingress players in Seattle.

In a world where video games, particularly casual games, are common place among the masses thanks to the advent of the smart phone, there seems to be a new gaming fad every few months.  Most recently we have had Angry Birds and Flappy Bird games sweep across mobile platforms.  Like most mobile games, the location where you play the game is largely irrelevant.  Location agnostic games are about to get a dose of serious competition from augmented reality mobile games.

Mobile gaming may be on the verge of a revolution.  Ingress is an augmented reality game developed by Google for Android and iOS.  It is a game which requires that you ally yourself with the Resistance or the Enlightened.  Next, you use your Ingress app to find nearby portals(selected sites in the real world).  You must physically travel to a portal which is usually located at major locations in a town or city.  Then you can find two other nearby portals and visit them to make a triangle called a control field.  Then you must defend your control field from other players to earn points.

 

Local Ingress Battle

The longer one is able to control their field, the more points they earn.  The amount of points are increased if the population is high.  For example, cities like are prime location to rack up copious amount of points yet it is a location where one is more likely to be attacked.  Thus, these population dense areas are harder to control.

 

Snapshot of the global game of Ingress.

Some players have become so competitive that they are willing to travel hundreds of miles to control new locations.  One man bought a plane ticket just to fly to a remote outpost in Alaska to control a portal in Ingress. 

 

The real question here is how far are augmented reality games like Ingress going to develop and how popular are they going to become.  Ingress already has a considerable following that is likely to grow as the game expands to more platforms.  This appears to be the dawn of a new age of video games that actually requires players to get off their couches and go outside.  Most likely this will lead to new friends for players as well as new enemies. 

 

Personally, I would love to download this application, but I might become too competitive and end up buying a plane ticket to remote locations in Alaska for a few extra outpost to control.  Though if I had the money and the free-time, this sounds like a fantastic experience that encourages people to travel to places that might not have visited before.  The impact of games like this could lead people to find new areas of their towns and cities that might not be familiar with.  Businesses might even begin to encourage Ingress or other augmented reality games to add their businesses as a portal to control.  The potential benefits and impacts of such a game are absolutely limitless.

 

Taking The Extra Step to Protect Your Online Privacy

Perhaps you may have already heard the latest news, but hackers have recently attacked Hollywood's most beloved Celebs!  Top celebs including Jennifer Lawrence (Hunger Games Series) and Kate Upton (Model) were two of the many celeb victims whose most private of photos were compromised to the world via hackers. What!? How could this happen you ask? Well... What is estimated to have happened to these unlucky celebs is that the unknown hacker or hackers successfully discovered the celebrities iCloud accounts, a cloud or internet/network storage system provided by Apple inc., and hacked into them with the intent of obtaining nude celeb photos.  These photos were then shared anonymously and dispersed throughout the web for all to see Huffington Post.  It is assumed by tech experts that the app "Find my iPhone" was the key tool used by the hackers. Although it is still unknown how exactly these photos were hacked, it ultimately raised awareness of the overall security of iCloud and thus new security measures have been taken to by Apple Inc. to protect its iCloud users.


So What?...
If this can happen to celebrities it can happen to anyone! This news story brings up the bigger question of how aware are you of your online privacy? As technology is fast expanding in our lives it is important to recognize the importance of taking the extra step to protect your privacy. Simple practices as reading fine print, assessing your privacy settings, having passwords with multiple characters and numbers can protect you against possible cyber crimes such as this.

Click Here For Tips on How to Secure Your iCloud

Kevin Mitnick: Notorious American Hacker

Kevin Mitnick is most recognized as the "World's most renowned hacker". A Hacker is defined as a “Technically proficient person who breaks into a computer system”.  Shortly after the rise of the personal computer in the late 1970’s, Mitnick's initial interest of hacking took hold.  He realized that his skill of hacking gave him power and recognition among his peers, allowing him to make friends easily. His first successful hack was manipulating the Los Angeles transit system by figuring out "how to obtain free bus passes at the age of 12".  He did this through the practice of social engineering, or "Social interaction that preys on human gullibility, sympathy, or fear to take advantage of the target, for example, to steal money, information, or other valuables-basically a con".

 Some hackers are motivated by greed, rather Mitnick ultimately hacked for the challenge, or "fun of it". He quotes his motives for hacking as "Intellectual curiosity, pursuit of knowledge and seduction of adventure"Huffington Post.  He developed an addiction for this challenge of hacking which led him to committing numerous cyber crimes and thus having to later suffer legal consequences.

Mitnick's hacking crimes were so intense that he became an inspiration for the well known movie War Games after hacking into the Pentagon, the headquarters of the U.S. Department of Defense. He later became one of the FBI's ten most wanted criminals during the 90's.  "The FBI claimed that Mitnick cost companies and institutions millions of dollars by stealing their software and altering computer information" 2001. Throughout Mitnick's extensive history of hacking, he has been charged and arrested for such crimes as,

1981: Manipulating and breaking into phone company networks, such as Pacific Bell for the purpose of stealing technical manuals

1982: Breaking into the U.S. Pentagon's (the National Headquarters of United States Department of Defense) computer system from his computer while at the University of Southern California

1987: Stealing computer software from California software company Santa Cruz Operation

1989: "Illegally downloading source code from Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC)"

1992: Stealing software from companies such as,  "Motorola, Nokia, and Fujitsu"

1995: Mitnick is finally captured and arrested in Raleigh, N.C. for crimes of illegally breaking into corporate computer networks and stealing software


Today, Kevin Mitnick has now been out of prison for 14 years (Released in 2000, after serving five years) and owns his own computer security firm called Mitnick Security Consulting http://mitnicksecurity.com/, in which he offers a variety of services to help protect valuable assets of organizations.  

In addition to his business he is also an author of numerous book titles including, Ghost in the wires: My Adventures as the Worlds Most Wanted Hacker (2011), about the true story of his hacking adventures. In the book he describes his experience as the FBI was closing in on him, saying he already knew they were watching him because he "broke into the local cell phone network, allowing him to detect when agents were near his apartment"  He then says "When they were close, he removed evidence but left behind a box of donuts in the refrigerator, labeling them "FBI donuts" to annoy his pursuers" 2011. 

Although Mitnick's cyber crimes were deemed illegal and punishable by law, I would consider myself a Mitnick supporter in that his crimes brought recognition of the seriousness of computer security and thus introduced changes in how people secure themselves.  Overall he successfully turned his love and skill for hacking into a useful trait to help others!

"Works Cited"

Anderson, Greg, David Ferro, and Robert Hilton. Connecting with Computer Science. 2nd ed. Boston: Course Technology, 2011. Print.

Freeman, Edward H. "The Legend and Legacy of Kevin Mitnick." Information Systems Security 10.2  (2001): 5-6. Acedemic Search Complete. Web. 01 Sept. 2014.

Smith, Gerry. "Kevin Mitnick, Former Fugitive Hacker, Laments How The Game Has Changed." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 16 Aug. 2011. Web. 01 Sept. 2014. 

Stuxnet and the Iranian Nuclear Program

     In November 2007 and numerous times since then, the United States has attacked Iran's nuclear program via a computer worm known as Stuxnet according to Symantec Corporation.  Recently, Symantec Corporation, which provides internet security, uncovered this young version of the virus.  Prior to this recent discovery by Symantec, the earliest case of cyberwarfare against the Iranian regime was thought to have been launched in 2009. 
     Symantec revealed even more information regarding this virus stain.  They found evidence of early versions of the virus dating all the way back to 2005.  The virus was created to "attack the Natanz facility by opening and closing valves that feed uranium hexafluoride gas into the centrifuges, without the knowledge of the operators"(Finkle).  This method of disruption was very similar to how the United States attacked Iran's facilities a few years later.  The 2005 version of the worm was created when the construction of the Natanz facility in Iran was completed. 
     The preemptivness of the United States to attack the facility is surprising.  At the time, and even today, it is still not very clear to whether Iran is developing nuclear weapons.  It was considerably more unclear back then.  Due to the instability in the region, it is very possible that Iran is building nuclear weapons to protect itself from its enemies.   If the United States has strategic interests that are threatened by a nuclear Iran, then proactive measures are certainly ethical.  There is no doubt that a nuclear Iran would disrupt the Middle East as the balance of power would shift heavily in favor of the Iranians.  In addition, the virus only damaged  centrifuges and did not cause any bodily harm to any Iranian.  This is a far better strategy than launching a military invasion of a nation to prevent the enrichment of weapons grade uranium.  However, if Iran is using these centrifuges for nuclear power, then the cyberwarfare attacks launched by the Untied States are unethical as they prevent Iran from providing much needed electrical power to its people. 
     These engagements in cyberwarfare are undoubtedly indicative of the future of warfare and international politics.  Governments and its people are heavily reliant on computer systems.  Computer systems have become the optimal target for attacks.  Certainly, this is better than warfare where men and women are killed on the battlefield.  However, viruses can be used by governments to attack more than just governments.  Citizens rely on the internet and infrastructure of computer systems in the private sector and for personal use.  Attacks on civilians or even accidental attacks on civilians may become more common place as viruses are increasingly used to wage covert cyberwarfare.  In addition, the amount of individuals that could be affected by cyberware is extremely high due to the interconnectedness of the world thanks to the advent of the Internet.  It is possible many of us will experience first hand the effects of cyberware first hand in our lifetime.

Works Cited



Finkle, Jim. "Researchers Say Stuxnet Was Deployed against Iran in 2007." Reuters. Thomson  Reuters, 26 Feb. 2013. Web. 01 Sept. 2014. <http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/02/26/us-cyberwar-stuxnet-idUSBRE91P0PP20130226>. 

What is Buffer Overflow?

To answer this question one must know what a buffer is. A buffer is memory storage that serves to temporarily store data while it is moving it from one place to another. Now that we have an idea of what a buffer is I can explain what buffer overflow is. Buffer overflow is when a program has too much data to process at once which in turn causes the program to shut down. It shows flaws in code that causes buffers to hold more information in their memory than they can handle. Once the information gets into the server/computer it can be specific data that instructs the computer to harm itself such as destroy or damage user’s files and data. These are types of viruses that can attack computers, which in turn make the computer vulnerable and weak.

An example of buffer overflow was when Microsoft Outlook and Outlook Express were targeted in 2000, when an attacker sent a virus threw their email. Even though nobody ever opened it, it was still able to access the computer once downloaded off the server due to bad coding.  It was said that Microsoft had a very hard time fixing this issue but eventually they were able to create a patch for it.

Source: http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/definition/buffer-overflow 

Hacker's Manifesto

When I first read the Hacker's Manifesto it was far from what I expected.  What I had expected was a couple lines stating why or when someone should hack, what I got instead was this.  The Manifesto turned out to be more of what I would consider a poem, rather than a statement, detailing the life of a kid who strongly identifies with the rest of his generation.  After doing a quick read-up on the Wikipedia page, I learned the Hacker's Manifesto was written by Loyd Blankenship after he had been arrested.

After reading it I gained a greater sense of why people would want to hack, especially if it is their forte.  The Manifesto explains how to this person, and the generalized group that are hackers, feel when they hack.  It gives a sense of freedom and revenge.  Freedom from the social constricts that come with other humans.  With a computer there is no guessing how it will react if something doesn't go its way.

"I made a discovery today. I found a comupter. Wait a second,
this is cool. It does what I want it to. If it makes a mistake it's
because I screwed it up. Not because it doesn't like me...
Or feels threatened by me...
Or thinks I'm a smart ass...
Or doesn't like teaching and shouldn't be here..."

The sense of revenge comes in part from those who say all kids are alike. How adults see all kids as good, for nothings who send all their time on the computer.  

Now, while I do understand the appeal of dealing with something that isn't constantly changing its mind or making me insecure. And I do oppose how most of the older generation generalize any young person who constantly uses a computer as good-for-nothing I still don't know if I believe the Hacker's Manifesto justifies the act of hacking.  It helps me to better understand why they do this, but it also has negative affects on others.   So, no, I do not believe there are necessarily ethical reasons to hacking.