Put in Jail for Using Lynx... Or Not.
Lynx is a popular (ok - maybe not popular, but
the most widely used) text mode web browser. It's commonly used by people
running over slow terminal-only connections, the blind, or those minimalists
that just want the text and nothing more. I've used it tons of times to access
systems when my only connection was a SSH link over GPRS.
Anyhow...
According to this story on Boing Boing, this guy tries to go and make a donation to British Telecom's (BT) tsunami relief fund using Lynx. IT guys at BT see the funny log entries (Lynx! WTF?) and immediately think that this is a hack attempt, and send the police crashing through the guy's door and resulting in his arrest and confiscation of his equipment. Way not cool.
However, Boing Boing links to an article on BBC's website that just claims that someone was arrested for hacking into the relief fund site - no mention of Lynx or anything else, and certainly none of the breathless details of the Boing Boing story. What's going on here? Boing Boing have inside information? Are they on crack? Is someone putting them on?
Update, January 27, 2005: The Boing Boing information has got to be wrong here - all day, and not a single confirming link anywhere. Just the original story from the BBC that doesn't mention anything odd except the hacking attempt. I'm calling shenanigans.
Update, January 28, 2005: The BoingBoing article now has this stuck at the bottom of it:
According to this story on Boing Boing, this guy tries to go and make a donation to British Telecom's (BT) tsunami relief fund using Lynx. IT guys at BT see the funny log entries (Lynx! WTF?) and immediately think that this is a hack attempt, and send the police crashing through the guy's door and resulting in his arrest and confiscation of his equipment. Way not cool.
However, Boing Boing links to an article on BBC's website that just claims that someone was arrested for hacking into the relief fund site - no mention of Lynx or anything else, and certainly none of the breathless details of the Boing Boing story. What's going on here? Boing Boing have inside information? Are they on crack? Is someone putting them on?
Update, January 27, 2005: The Boing Boing information has got to be wrong here - all day, and not a single confirming link anywhere. Just the original story from the BBC that doesn't mention anything odd except the hacking attempt. I'm calling shenanigans.
Update, January 28, 2005: The BoingBoing article now has this stuck at the bottom of it:
Update:: The source that told me about this has corroborated it with more detail in private email, but is leery of going public. I hope that more publicly available details appear soon, and will post them when I have them.OK - I'm holding my breath.
Posted: Thu - January 27, 2005 at 11:09 AM
Quick Links
Every normal man must be tempted at times to spit on his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats.
- H.L. Mencken
Calendar
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
Categories
Archives
PHOTO ALBUMS
The Photo Galleries are offline at the moment. I've moved the site to a new provider and haven't had time to set them up.
OS X Software
Windows Software
Miscellaneous Stuff
RSS Feed