Monday, June 16, 2008
NAFTA: Finally doing something for me
I bummed a ride to Buffalo and got my TN status today: the official start of my career in computer security...or is it?
The process was pretty seamless. In fact, I didn't get fingerprinted, I didn't get grilled, and I didn't have to explain to the officer what to put on the form and where to sign it: it was easier than J-1 status!
The worst question was: "Any criminal record, arrests, or things we should know about?"
Since I got the TN status, you may infer that I answered no. But I had to give it some thought, especially after receiving my graduation gift from my parents this weekend:
Yes, it's a copy of my middle-school suspension notice, informing my parents that I had been suspended for computer hacking.
Apparently, I had the distinction of being the first student to be suspended for violating computer rules. It shows: my crime (keylogging a variety of computers) is described as violating copyright; the school's system administrator had a dictionary-attackable password; and, after a stern talking-to, the school librarian returned the floppy disk with the erased keylog file.
A few clicks later, and I had resurrected the list of usernames and passwords that she had erased. Mmmm, data.
So is my TN the official start of my career? Or is it just the next logical step, which will defeat attacks as naive as simple keylogging? I look forward to finding out!
The process was pretty seamless. In fact, I didn't get fingerprinted, I didn't get grilled, and I didn't have to explain to the officer what to put on the form and where to sign it: it was easier than J-1 status!
The worst question was: "Any criminal record, arrests, or things we should know about?"
Since I got the TN status, you may infer that I answered no. But I had to give it some thought, especially after receiving my graduation gift from my parents this weekend:
Yes, it's a copy of my middle-school suspension notice, informing my parents that I had been suspended for computer hacking.
Apparently, I had the distinction of being the first student to be suspended for violating computer rules. It shows: my crime (keylogging a variety of computers) is described as violating copyright; the school's system administrator had a dictionary-attackable password; and, after a stern talking-to, the school librarian returned the floppy disk with the erased keylog file.
A few clicks later, and I had resurrected the list of usernames and passwords that she had erased. Mmmm, data.
So is my TN the official start of my career? Or is it just the next logical step, which will defeat attacks as naive as simple keylogging? I look forward to finding out!
