Well first off, I'd like to introduce myself. I go by the handle Rambone,
and I run a board in the Midwest area. I'm sure a column like this is a shock
to a lot of reader's, but after talking to Dispater, many readers, and people
in the hacking and pirate world, we came to this conclusion: Piracy and *Warez
Dudez* have come a long way in the last five years, and are a definite part of
the underground. Whether you read the magazine for information about hacking, phreaking, or even those great PWN stories, I think this column will be a
welcome part of Phrack Magazine.
2) Virii
Some poor unsuspecting fool downloads a program, unzips it, and instead of
checking it for a virus, starts the program up. After deciding it's a lame
game, he deletes it and turns off his computer, going to sleep without a worry
in the world. The next day he wakes up and tries to turn on his computer, but
it tells him, "Bad or missing COMMAND.COM" or something of that nature.
This is just an example of what's happened to countless people in the
pirate world, not expecting what is soon to be hours of frustrating
reconstruction of his hard drive. Even though virii have been a common problem
for many years, it hasn't been until recently that they have made an impact in
the Pirate world.
Whether it's bickering between groups, or even a lonely individual who has
absolutely nothing better to do than beat his meat and put out a trainer with a
fucking virus in it, it is wrong. The people responsible for it that play a
roll in the distribution of the software are, in my opinion, the biggest
culprits; they know what they are about to do, and have no conscience in
sending it out. Just the mere fact that the only way they think they can get
back at another group is by distributing a program with a virus or a Trojan is
moronic.
I'm not preaching the fact that groups should or should not bicker. That
is always going to happen. What I an saying is that there is a responsibility
by the groups to be cool and stop the distribution of programs with virii or
Trojan's. On the flip side of the coin, most sysops do not intentionally send
out these infected programs. They are sent up to the BBS, and by the time they
are caught, it's too late, and they are already all over the country.
My main concern is for the user. If all one group was doing was giving
another group problems, then there wouldn't be one. But to irresponsibly
release a program containing a virus has to be one of the lowest retaliatory
responses that can be done in the pirate world, and needs to be stopped to
bring piracy back to a higher level it once had before the rash of bombs began.
*Note to user*
Most virii are in the form of trainers and cracks, so be wary of every one
you have or get. The best way to check is with PKUNZIP -T and McAffee's Virus
Scanner; I've found it to be the most reliable. If anyone is having trouble
with being able to temporarily open a .ZIP, .ARJ, etc., I have a sharp .BAT
file to do this and will type it up in a future issue. DO NOT use a program
without at least scanning the directory you unzipped it to, even though
scanning the zip is much safer.
3) Nets
Some issues here will be the discussion of up and coming nets, as well as
established ones. Let me first explain what a net is: a net is a group of
messages sent out over the networks via modem. They are then received by a BBS
and sent to the appropriate message subs for the sysop and users to read. One
up and coming net in particular that would be appealing to a wide variety of
sysops is called "CyberCrime." This net is looking for boards that are Fido
| You Get Busted! | So the red lights are blinking behind you and your radar
|_________________| detector is going wild because you weren't paying
attention because you were too busy messing with the radio
and jamming to MC 900' Jesus so loudly that it shakes the widows of the car
next to you. The first thing you want to do is pull over immediately! Don't
try to be an bad ass and out run them. In most cases the cop's car can go
faster than yours and besides, he has a radio. After you pull over, just hand
him what ever he asks for and play in his desire to be "in control".
Always say, "Yes sir" and "No sir" They LOVE that. Be as NICE as you can.
Act "humbled". I know this may sound difficult but just TRY. ALL and I mean
ALL people that become law enforcement officials have taken that job because
they have some personality disorder that they NEED to feel in control of others
and a NEED for others to respect them. This is a weakness in their
personality, in my opinion. Anyway, If he just had a good round of golf that
day, he may only write you a warning. If he still insists on writing you a
ticket, he will at least know that you will not be a threat to him. ALL
police officers, especially in large urban areas, will always approach your car
as though you are going to shoot them. Make the officer thinks you are nice
person (for the moment) and that your just weren't paying attention and you
made a mistake. Again, as soon as you prove to him you are not a threat, he
will relax and things will go much easier for you. I ALWAYS do this and the
officer is actually NICE back to me most of the time. Even though his first
impression is "long haired kid in a hot rod car wearing a Metallica shirt," the
encounter usually ends with a "Have a nice day." or a "Just make sure you be
careful now. ok?"
NOTE: If you are pulled over by a bull-dyke female cop, you are totally
fucked. Social engineering is totally useless. ALL and I mean ALL bitch cops
are just looking to prove something. They have a bad attitude because the "old
boy" network back at the station doesn't like them and they think that most
males will look on them as less of an authority figure merely because they are
female, if they do not compensate (overcompensate) for the fact that they are
women. They think that they will be challenged more often than not by you. I
have yet to ever meet a NICE female cop. Lets face it, if they were NICE they would probably be an attorney or something. If you are women police officer
reading this and you are not like what I have just described in the above
paragraph then just ignore it and tell your cohorts to adjust the attitude!
Continuing on...As you are sitting there with everyone slowing down to take a
look at you, make note of EVERYTHING! Write down the following:
1) Location (intersections, curves, condition of the road)
2) Weather (rain, fog, snow : all hinder traffic radar)
3) Traffic and all types of vehicles present (large trucks?)
4) Time (rush hour?)
5) Buildings present (airport? radio station? bank? microwave towers?
power lines? hospital? telephone office?)
6) Officer's attitude (if he's angry this will play in your favor later)
