=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = F.U.C.K. - Fucked Up College Kids - Born Jan. 24th, 1993 - F.U.C.K. = =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Review of _Takedown_ by Tsutomu Shimomura w/ John Markoff "The Pursuit and Capture of Kevin Mitnick, America's Most Wanted Computer Outlaw" I must admit that I approached this novel with a certain amount of what can only be construed as bias against the co-authors of this book. Even the inside cover caused me to wrinkle my nose with distaste. One thing I always have despised about "respected authors" is when they are innacurate for the sake of dramatic effect. On the inside cover, Markoff says that Mitnick made a "fatal mistake" by breaking into the "brilliant" Shimomura's computer system. Well, as far as I know, Mitnick is still alive, so the mistake could hardly have been fatal. As far as Shimomura's brilliance is concerned, well, I would have to reserve judgement on that since I do not know him personally. Also according to John Markoff, this battle was fought for "the soul of the Internet." It seems more like the battle was fought for Shimomura's soul, since it was his personal files that he was concerned about. Later Shimomura states that he was probed from the Colorado SuperNet on various occasions. Now, had he been fighting for "the soul of the Internet", he should have notified the Colorado SuperNet of the suspicious activities emanating from their site long before Mitnick used that site as a vehicle. On the back cover, where the credits are listed for the authors, Markoff is credited with being "respected" for his "lucid coverage of technology." I would have to contest this statement. I have read several accounts by journalists and security experts who question Markoff's methods and his motives. After reading this book, I can say that I question them as well. Overall, I found the entire book to be rather difficult to get into. The little details about Shimomura's personal life did nothing but weigh the book down with unnecessary details. If the book professes to be about the capture of Kevin Mitnick, it should be about the capture of Kevin Mitnick, not Shimomura's excercise habits or a catalogue of the scope of his various Sun Workstations. Furthermore, I must confess that I was never interested in the details of Shimomura's romantic status, or the "office gossip" that permeates the book. Early in the book, one of Shimomura's friends reports having received a phone call from Mitnick himself. They discussed the fact that Shimomura had written a disassembler for Oki cell phones. He then calls John Markoff and plays a tape recording of the conversation for him. Markoff, who admits to never being formally introduced to Mitnick, tells Shimomura's buddy that it sounds like Mitnick on the phone. I question two things here: 1) Why *did* Shimomura write a disassembler for an Oki cell phone? Did Oki hire him to do it? 2) Since Markoff had never formally met Mitnick, what makes him an authority in identifying his voice? Does writing a book about someone qualify you as an expert? Only when Littman, a journalist familiar with Mitnick's voice, confirms Markoff's suspicions, does this become remotely swallowable. Throughout this tale, there are repeated references and citations of Shimomura's brilliance and Markoff's technical savoire-faire. There is a long, drawn-out section devoted to how Shimomura frequently got into trouble with his computer related activities and his relations with well- known hackers-turned-security-experts. Reprints of Markoff's "zero-day" security articles pepper the book, complete with descriptions of how they were "prominently displayed" in various national newspapers. Frankly, this leaves a bad taste in my mouth. How can anyone trust an account of events so riddled with self-serving biases? Personally, I could not be involved in a project like this where I was constantly patting myself and my co-author on the back for our collective efforts against this "outlaw" Kevin Mitnick. The derogatory terms used to describe Mitnick are highly inflammatory, the end result being an all-too-trite account of a man neither person has ever met. I am certainly no Mitnick apologist. I do not agree with what he has done. I *do* disagree with subjective journalism and self-serving treatments of events. After several chapters of tedious technical documentation of the search for Mitnick, I, the reader, became rather bored with reading about Shimomura's short Unix programs, meetings with Netcom, the WELL staff, and Markoff. There are a few bright points in the midst of all of this text, however. There are several exact transcripts of various sessions that Mitnick initiated. Although they seem to have been chosen for their ability to put Mitnick in a bad light, they are still the only point in the book where we get to see exactly what Mitnick was doing. The verification that Netcom did indeed keep their credit info online was also rather refreshing, since Netcom has denied this since the file was stolen. Throughout the book, Shimomura repeatedly says that Mitnick is not a good hacker, that he makes mistakes, and that he is just another geek that can read a technical manual. I disagree here also. Obviously, if Mitnick is good enough to keep Shimomura, the "brilliant" security expert, chasing after him for so long (7 weeks total), then Mitnick can't be all that stupid. The fact that Shimomura did not disable well-known security holes on his personal machines is slightly disconcerting. The fact that Shimomura did not tell the FBI who Markoff was and why he was present during the chase smacks of outright deception. I agree that Shimomura used excellent techniques to find Mitnick, if a little unconventional. From what this book portrays, Mitnick's downfall was his arrogance. Shimomura clamped down on that and was able to use this to his advantage. From all that I have read, I can conclude that this book is interesting, even if it is poorly written and slightly "bent" to one side. I recommend that anyone interested in this topic should read it, keeping in mind the various ethical considerations involved when a reporter gets involved in chasing down a hacker. Even John Littman asks questions about this in his book about Kevin Poulson, _The Fugitive Game_. Even the FBI was uncomfortable with Markoff's presence during the investigation. I think this is a valid concern, and that Markoff should reconsider his motives when writing about the computer undergorund. One more fiasco like this one and I don't think anyone would shrink from calling his kind of journalism "yellow". Anonymous =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = Questions, Comments, Bitches, Ideas, Rants, Death Threats, etc etc... = = Internet : jericho@netcom.com (Mail is welcome) = =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= = gote land +27.31.441115 = = Arrested Development +31.77.3547477 = = Chemical Persuasion 203.324.0894 Celestial Woodlands 214.252.6455 = = that stupid place 215.985.0462 Hacker's Haven 303.343.4053 = = E.L.F. (NUP) 314.272.3426 Misery 318.625.4532 = = Dungeon Sys. 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