The Hacker's Encyclopedia 1998

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_______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ THE SYNDICATE REPORT Information Transmittal No. 21 (Part 2 of 2) Released March 2, 1989 Featuring: Editor's Note "Cyberpunks" Vs. The Media Telecommunications Events, Conferences, Seminars, and Shows Software Links Unix System to Atomic Clock Briefs notes from The Report " Hackers Fail Raiding ATMs " by The Sensei Editor Syndicate Report Magazine _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ EXPOSITION: TSR Once again, The Report accepts outside sources. Anybody can write/provide information to The Syndicate Report. Articles/Information may be provided through RADIO WAVES Bulletin Board System 612-471-0060. Any info such as Busts, Phreaking, Hacking, Data / Telecommunications, and new developments on any the previous mentioned specialties will be: accepted, labeled, and given full actual credit to the article/info provider(s), or writer(s). -- Special Editor, TS, comments are placed between brackets. Example: [ Hi. ] ** All articles have been presented by me unless shown at the end of the article as the information provider(s), or writer(s). ** _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ EDITOR'S NOTE: TSR Just a quick note. Just in case many of you don't know...I distribute an introduction package at least 3 days every month before actually releasing The Syndicate Report. These can be found on the systems listed at the end of this part of TSR. ;The Sensei / TSR!612 _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ "CYBERPUNKS" VS. THE MEDIA: TSR (s.t 2\27) The following article can from a newspaper local to myself. The newspaper is the "Star and Tribune." I, The Sensei, usually don't print up verbatim copies of articles, but this articles was very interesting and entertaining. Some of the information presented in insulting to most Hackers/Phreaks, etc., so I'm going to comment on parts of the article. Comments will be in designated brackets, like this: [ Blah, Blah...Har Har -TS ] _____________________________________________________________ Silicon Valley -- A local Cop patrolling after midnight witnessed an unusual sight, even for this center of high technology: Two teenagers wedged in a phone booth, laboring over the keyboard of a laptop computer clipped into the telephone line. [ This is very humorous for me...I can't help wondering what technique these guys are using to access Bell Fone's, heh. ] The youths, who were arrested for telephone fraud and computer abuse, belong to a shadowy culture of computer vandals committed to illegally entering and frequently tampering with the computer networks on which society has come to rely. Those in this expanding underground -- known as CYBERPUNKS to themselves and some social scientists -- have broken into corporate and military computers and tampered with telephone billing switching equipment, sometimes altering services and monitoring telephone lines. Some have boasted of illicitly entering computer used in stock-market trading. [ First of all, I protest to the term, "Cyberpunks." No hacker I know of as called themselves Cyberpunks. If anyone reading this does, your probably not a considered a hacker by most. Second, Social Scientists don't know anything about hackers -- they're just another worthless clan of scientists trying to shape society as they wish. ] [ The newspaper then goes on to refresh our memories about the Morris Jr. Unix WORM, haven't we heard enough about his guy. And it was a really complicated set of code he set for his so-called CSci Project. ] Articles describing how to write viruses have appeared in several publications that are widely circulated within the underground. Writing in the journal 2600, which says it speaks for the computer underground, an author using the pseudonym "The Plague" described how to create a virus. "If people's data is destroyed, then so be it," he wrote. "If people are stupid enough to accept pirated software, then they deserve to be punished," says Plague. [ Well, The Plague has it all wrong. Viruses are not ONLY in pirated software, my friend, they creep within all types of programs. Your just adding to the problem. It's goes against 'Hacker Ethics,' but the information should not to suppressed from the hacking community. ] The term CYBERPUNK is a reference to a popular science fiction genre that deals with an intersecting world of high technology and outlaw society. "This is the case of art driving reality," said one Social Scientist at the Institute for the Future, Calif. "You have a small group who is actually going it, and a large pool that is buying into what they are doing and redefining reality." [ Yet another scientist from a corrupt institution, making conclusions based on a small fraction of neo-hackers. ] Cyberpunks often are called HACKERS, but computer scientists are careful to note that not all hackers are malicious. The term originally referred to researchers who were committed to designing advanced computer hardware and software. [ This is the first decent statement I've read. ] Another often-heard term is "PHREAKING," which is the illegal use of telephone systems. "Phreaking is moral," said an 18 year-old hacker who calls himself, "Frank Drake" in messages on the bulletin boards. "There is no theft involved. It's not theft of services, because this equipment would otherwise be idle." [ It's about time these Media-Types informed the public of my favorite hobby, Phreaking. And about the definition Frank Drake gave. "Illegal use of Fone System." ? Sorry, not all of the uses by phreaks is illegal. More than anything, phreaking is basically composed of "Learning about the Bell system, along with illegal use." ] Computer experts working in the industry who have become involved with malicious hackers see them as computer addicts possessed by an antisocial obsession. "They're misfits, losers or troubled individuals lacking a sense of duty or morals," said a computer researcher at a Silicon Valley institution. [ Misfits? Losers? Antisocial individuals? This is another scientist shooting his mouth off with little support. The idea of hackers being social outcasts, or losers is a common misconception by many. Most malicious computer hackers are party animals when given the right conditions. And if one was told he is labeled an, "Outcast, Loser etc.", the person talking would get an entire new face of the word MALICIOUS. Namely a 99e99 dollar fone bill, credit check and unchecked, and maybe a subscription to every magazine on the face of the Earth. ] In recent years this researcher has offered four underground hackers programming jobs to try to channel their energy away from destructive use of computers. In each case the experiment ended in failure, the scientists said. The researcher asked not to be indentified, and his reason is revealing. He fears that the CYBERPUNKS/Hackers are so skilled at tampering with computers that they might be able to alter his credit rating or have his electricity turned off. [ Oh my. Will these guys never learn? Hackers are not stupid "Lab Rats." They want a challenge, away from sitting at a computer programming for another person. And this scientist is concluding his entire experiment on just a few hackers. Yes, his fear of hackers is valid. I am now thinking of ways to find out who this guy might be. The credit rating would be no problem, same with the electricity. A scientist without electricity, is like a hacker without Telenet. ] "Every single one of them had deep psychological problems," he said. Some members of the hacker underground appear to agree with this psychological assessment. [ Hah! No comment...for obvious reasons. ] "They have this crazed need to find the answer," said Eric Corley, edit of 2600 Magazine. Corley, whose personal hacking resulted in three brushed with the law before he started the publication in 1984, said: "They keep exploring where they know they shouldn't go. A true hacker won't stop just because he gets in trouble." [ Corley is totally correct here, of course. But I think some hackers don't stop hacking, because some are just over powered with the need to learn. I never stopped hacking after by bust for many reasons. I the primary reason was because I'm not a quitter, and I looked back on how much had I learned. With the learning, fun followed. ] Although computer experts believe the number of outlaw hackers is growing, the behavior they exhibit is not new to the high-tech world. For example, a computer programmer, John Draper, spent six months in jail during the 1970s for illegal use of the telephone network. Draper's nickname, "Captain Crunch," derived from his discovery that a whistle that came as a prize in a cereal box was tuned to the correct frequency to unlawfully manipulate fone company switch gear. [ Hmmm. Every hacker knows all this already. At least a true hacker should know his/her past. But the thing I can't help wondering is, what was Captain Crunch doing with a whistle from the "Captain Crunch cereal" box? And why was he blowing it into the fone. Makes me laugh if you think about it. Another thing, anyone with two front teeth can blow a 2600 Hz tone whistle. ] ;The Sensei / TSR!612 _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ BUSTING TELEPHONE SOLICITORS: TSR (st.cit 2\27) Join to fight telephone solicitors! How you ask? Read on... :::: Illustration, Exampling :::: "Have you ever off and had a fantasy of going to the library and finding out who owns the companies that call YOU, interrupt you, and calling THEM back? It makes you happy for a while. Particularly when working 11 to 7 shift, you'd think of the companies that had awoken you (using YOUR private fone) at noon." "One nurse I know did something like that to a persistent insurance salesman. One day she got awake and alert enough to get his name and number and promised to call back. She did. At 2 AM, announcing that it was HER working day, and she was now awake and would like to discuss the policy....He never called her back." -TS :::: Tips Offs to a Fone Scam :::: If it sounds too good to be true, it's probably a scam. Some of the most popular promotions among telephone con artists include prize offers to get you to buy water purifiers or vitamins, magazine subscriptions, PENNY STOCKS, precious metals, travel and cellular telephone lottery applications. Be skeptical of says such as, "This is the best deal you'll ever find," or "Double your money, no risk!" The government, Federal Trade Commission estimates that Americans lose 1$ billion a year from the deceptive peddling of goods and services over the fone. Other organizations say it's much higher. One might suggest lobbying for stricter FED laws governing 'telemarketing businesses.' :::: Striking Back at 'The Solicitor' :::: o Do NOT hang up on telephone solicitors. This just allows them to make another call 200 milliseconds later. Listen to them. Ask stupid questions. Drag out conversation. Contemplate placing an order, then don't. Or start to place an order, then change your mind. o Try wasting their time as much as possible, cackle insanely and hang up. Or give them the raspberry and yell, "Only f00ling!121!!&!" o Remember always, that these twits are partially paid on commission. The more of their time you waste, the less they are gonna earn. Eventually they may quit, and if we're persistent enough, maybe someday nobody will WANT to work for these cretins. o Why not add "May I speak to your supervisor?" for no good reason... o "Just a sec., I'll get my wife, she's really interested in this sort of thing..." and leave the phone on the table for 10 minutes... o Blow him some nice tones. 1000 Hz is nice. o If it's a girl, start to BS with her. Ask her out. Even better, make like to you who she is, and your going to strange things to her body. 90% are ugly college chics, so you might not be able to hang up on one with this approach. Use your own judgement. o Turn the bell off on the phone, and hook up an answering machine, and sleep, sleep. :::: Ethics one should abide by :::: o Don't go after the lower echelons of the company by terrorizing the telemarketer. They have no effect on the company. All you do is ruin somebody else's night. With few exceptions, he is just as unhappy about bothering you as you are about being interrupted. o Lash back at the company, not the peon. He's paid to do that. 4 out of 5 people wouldn't do that unless they were paid. :::: REMEMBER :::: The organizing principal of modern society is, "The only people in contact with the public are the ones with no authority". Keeps we, the people, fighting with each other while leaving the Bosses free to play power games with lives. :::::::::::: Information written by The Sensei / TSR Editor ::::::::::: _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ TELCOMMUNICATIONS EVENTS, TSR (c.c 2\28) CONFERENCES, SEMINARS, and SHOWS: This is a list of meetins and show in the up coming month. I'm providing this list for you and your friends to rob, cheat, and swindle the angered companies that participate in there events. You are likely to find your dreams come true in telephone accessories and other wonderful equipment. Many things will be on show, so take items as you please. There could be butt sets, testing equipment, and other stuff at your disposal. Remember, their parking lots are usually filled with BELL trucks, just waiting for you to clean them out. ________________________________________ Mar. 3-4 Exchange Carriers of Utah St. George, UT Holiday Inn Phone: 801-298-4242 Mar. 6-8 Voice '89 Santa Clara, CA Convention Center Phone: 713-974-6637 Mar. 6-10 MFOC '89 Washington, DC Hyatt Crystal City Phone: 800-323-1088 Mar. 7-9 REA Telecomm. Eng. & Mgmt. Seminar Minneapolis, MN Marriott City Center Phone: 202-382-8663 Mar. 8-15 Hannover Fair CeBit '89 Hannover, West Germany Hannover Fairgrounds Phone: 609-987-1202 Mar. 12-15 Minnesota Telephone Bloomington, MN Radisson South Hotel Phone: 612-291-7311 Mar. 13-16 Interface '89 New York City, NY Javits Conention Center Phone: 617-449-6600 Mar. 14-17 Carolina-Virginias Spring Mtg. Releigh, NC Marriot Hotel Phone: 919-592-5751 Mar. 15-16 InterCom '89 Miami, FL Hyatt Regency Hotel Phone: 305-446-5150 Mar. 19-22 South Carolina Telephone Charleston, SC Omni Hotel Phone: 803-722-4900 Mar. 19-22 Entelec '89 New Orleans, LA Louisiana Superdome Phone: 504-561-4530 Mar. 28-30 TBT West '89 Long Beach, CA Long Beach Convention Ctr. Phone: 800-243-6002 Mar. 29-Apr. 1 Communications Indonesia Jakarta, Indonesia Jakarta Fairgrounds Phone: 301-656-2942 Well all that's all for this month. For more, read up coming Reports! ::::::::::::::::::::::::: Seymour Lecker / TWA ::::::::::::::::::::::: _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ SOFTWARE LINKS UNIX SYSTEM TO ATOMIC CLOCK: TSR (i.w 2\28) Precision Standard Time Inc. recently placed in the public domain software that synchronizes nodes on a Unix TCP/IP network to the atomic clock that U.S. Government uses to keep official time. On Unix networks, a number of time-sensitive applications require careful synchronization, both between network elements and in relation to an absolute time standard. Now inconsistencies need not occur. The software continually synchronizes nodes on a network to within 100 milliseconds on the atomic clock at the National Institute for Standards and Technology. US NO 202-653-0351. The software consists of University of Maryland's Time Demon, "ntpd," which implements the Network Time Protocol and synchronizes the host computer to Coordinated Universal Time, the international time standard. The software can be operated with or without a Time Source radio receiver sold by Precision ST. Without an external time standard, however, no provision exists to correct inaccuracies caused by the drift of computer calendar clocks or by errors introduced in manual clock setting. _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ ::::::::::::::::::::::SYNDICATE REPORT BRIEF NOTES::::::::::::::::::::: // Callers Must be Told the Cost // The FCC yesterday ordered 5 companies that charge customers 20% to 80% more than AT&T, MCI or Sprint to toe the line. The alternative operators must now tell callers how much the call will cost and which company is placing it before it goes through. The high rates usually are placed on hotel, airport or hospital phones. :: UPDATE :: As stated above, alternative long-distance operators must: Put a sticker on the phone with price information or tell the caller the price verbally; give callers an chance to hang up without any charge; offer callers a chance to go through AT&T or another phone service. Right now many alternative operators stop you from using another carrier. _____________________________________________________________ // Bell Goes To College // Bell Atlanticom Systems said yesterday it has signed a contract with the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Va., for a fully integrated voice and data communications system. The campus-wide system will provide resale of communications services to students, a management system, and a universal wiring plan to provide voice and data transmission. The communications system obtained by the College of William and Mary yesterday will provide 300 trunks, 3,800 faculty and student lines, 150 voice/data faculty users and 1,050 host data ports. It includes more than 5,000 inside wiring runs and several miles of fiber optics. Also included: A 1,000- user Aspen Voice Mail System and the Alex-IS Telecommunications Management System. _____________________________________________________________ // Hackers Fail Raiding ATMs // TSR If authorities hadn't been tipped, a computer hackers could have cracked one cash-machine network of more than 14$ million over a single weekend, of Feb. 18. Charged in the plot were GTE Corp. consultant Mark Koenig, and 4 other hackers. Federal Agents said the hackers pulled the personal ATM codes from GTE telephone lines. The lines transmit transactions from account at Bank of America and thousands of other banks linked to the Plus System, a national network of shared ATMs. The Hackers put the data in magnetic strips on 5,500 pieces of card board. They planned to use the bogus cards to make withdrawals around the country. If it were not for a "TIPOFF", authorities wouldn't have known what hit them. [ Now this is a sad story. These -hackers- have a chance to break 14 MILLION in tax-free cash, and they blow it. I bet one of them bragged about it to a girl friend. That's the only way computer hackers get caught...they have to see some limelight. ] --TS ::::::::: Information provided by John "Scij" / 612 ::::::::: _____________________________________________________________ // Speaking of ATM Heists... // Recently, a crook used a Security Pacific National Bank ATM master card, which tapped into virtually all accounts. The heist resulted in a 237,000$ win for the hacker. The bank reimbursed depositors but still have not found the culprit. Alarmed by the incident, the American Bankers Assoc. plans to urge its 13,500 members to strictly limit access to ATM master cards and personal indentification codes. _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ :::::::::::::::::::::::: TSR "Quote of the Month" ::::::::::::::::::::: "They [Hackers] have this need to find the answer." To subscribe to the 2600 Magazine send 15$ to: 2600 Magazine P.O. BOX 752 Middle Island N.Y. 11953 --Corley, Editor 2600 Magazine _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ TSR will accept additional sponsor/support Systems. If you have a certain interest in the Report, and wish to provide support to TSR -- Leave your BBS number -- and any other information on RADIO WAVES Bulletin Board Systems. _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ Pheonix Proj. LODH :: 512-441-3088 ----- Lunatic Labs :: 415-278-7421 At Login: Any UNIX Default PW P/H System Tiamats Temple Pvt :: 612-731-0296 ----- Hack Shack @ :: 214-422-4307 P/H-Files BBS Login: Any UNIX Default Pass RADIO WAVES System :: 612-471-0060 - Syndicate Report Support BBS - _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ This concludes this Transmittal No. 21 (Part 2 of 2) Released March 2nd, 1989 by The Sensei Editor of The Syndicate Report _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ -= EOF =-