Dude getting 120 years in prison for running distributed computing at work

[SirDennis]

This network administrator was running RC5 on about 500 PC's for AnandTech; he could be put away for life! What do you guys think?

http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/23477.html

[SirDennis]

Sorry, meant "could be getting 120 years". My bad

[Ploaf]

We were talking about that yesterday. http://forums.overclockers.ws/vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=53251

I think the prosecution is just completely out of hand, looking for some way to convict a hacker. Not sure why, but he's got a real ho for this case.

It didn't help McOwen that there was a potential financial reward for his effort and that may have had a bearing on this, but still...

This is why we say to get permission first. I don't want to read about anyone here ending up in jail just because we want to beat OCAU and [H]ardOCP.

[JetMech]

Someone is using him to make an example. How is his "crime" so much worse than armed robbery, some murders or especially embezzlement (a white collar crime which sometimes carries no jail time). What might be "120 years maximum" might end up a lot less if he pleads guilty and agrees to make restitution. Hopefully he has a smart lawyer.

[TT120]

Doesn't make much sense to me, a rapist will get 5 years, serve 2 and be out to do it again, This guy uses a bit of badnwidth and is looking at 120 years. WTF?!

[Yobbzz]

Originally posted by TT120
Doesn't make much sense to me, a rapist will get 5 years, serve 2 and be out to do it again, This guy uses a bit of badnwidth and is looking at 120 years. WTF?!

Yea something is definitely wrong here.:confused: :confused: :confused:

[flounder43]

I said it in another thread, and I'll say it again: This is a very disturbing combination of overzealous prosecution and computer ignorance.

[Tithulta]

It's all in the wording of the LAW...it's WAY TOO BROAD a description of what is "something I can't remember what to call it". It's either Hacking or computer theft forget which. No the prize money will not "help" his case any at all since it provided the "potential" for financial gain. I agree TOTALLY the justice system is wacked... Like TT120 said..somethings wrong when a rapist gets 5 years and then is released early and a computer user borrowing a very SMALL bit of bandwith could get 120 years in prison. The company "OWNS" their bandwith and by him using it without permission it is by definition of the law stolen property. Ridiculous as it is we all know, trouble is the people who write the laws have NO CLUE. It's like some of the laws they've tried to pass against online porn. Most of it is worded in such a broad base of terms many of our fav online games would fall under prosecution. Until our legislators get a CLUE about information technologies.

[lennytiger]

what about schools and things oc au have a few schools folding for them the guy.gal that put folding on at the svhool could go to jail for "stealing" school property without permisiion!!

[Ploaf]

The guys that are running those large farms for OCAU do have thier employers blessing. In fact Norgs said that he was asked to switch the machines to a humanitarian cause. Not sure what was running on them before.
It seems that most of these large farms are coming from outside the US, specifically AU and W. Europe and maybe Canada(although I haven't heard of too many Canadian farms of that size) which makes me think that there is a general attitude in those places that is positive towards a project of this nature, whereas here and many other countires the management may be much more reluctant to allow this type of activity to take place for one reason or another.

[flounder43]

Originally posted by Ploaf
whereas here and many other countires the management may be much more reluctant to allow this type of activity to take place for one reason or another.

Yep. Here are the reasons:

1. General computer ignorance.

2. Fear of "Hackers" (not sure what they think a hacker is, but the media sure has them scared!)

3. Distrust of all things "computer" related...(remember "HAL" from "2001"?)

4. Fear of exposure to legal liability. "We do not want to be held responsible for the consequences that may result from discovering intellegent extraterrestrial beings...therefore, our legal department has advised us against funding, aiding, or in any way fostering your 'distributed computing' request..."

5. Greedy American business ethic: "why give something away, when we could be making money from it?"

[lennytiger]

Originally posted by flounder43

5. Greedy American business ethic: "why give something away, when we could be making money from it?"




Well you could say, Stanford university is trying to get more computer power to help process its findings or whatever, we are GIVING them the use of our machines our time and effort to help cure diseases, or so we think.

We don't what we actually process what we are told is that it is Altzheimer etc etc, but do you actually know and believe that your computer is actually helping "cure diseases"?

[flounder43]

Originally posted by lennytiger

We don't what we actually process what we are told is that it is Altzheimer etc etc, but do you actually know and believe that your computer is actually helping "cure diseases"?

Errr, I guess I forgot one:

6: Paranoid delusions about how one's computer cycles are not acutally being used to "cure diseases"...But are rather being used to probe the brains of unwitting overclockers...

[flounder43]

I guess if I were asked to do folding for the Cental Iowa College of Chiropractic, I would ask questons...But Stanford? Come on...


BTW, the whole of my post was meant to be satire (silly), sorry I failed...

[lennytiger]

Originally posted by flounder43


Errr, I guess I forgot one:

6: Paranoid delusions about how one's computer cycles are not acutally being used to "cure diseases"...But are rather being used to probe the brains of unwitting overclockers...




Well tell me then, how can you just believe that all your computer is doing is simulating a process called "folding" and thus is curing diseases. Bear in mind I'm only 14 one of the youngest folders around, and I take a lot of convincing, maybe an email from someone important from stanford!!

Anyway I'm still for you guys because I believe that this team has the best spirit, strength and the processor power to beat the aussies, bear in mind where I live I'm on the australians doorstep!!

[Ploaf]

Originally posted by lennytiger
Well tell me then, how can you just believe that all your computer is doing is simulating a process called "folding" and thus is curing diseases. Bear in mind I'm only 14 one of the youngest folders around, and I take a lot of convincing, maybe an email from someone important from stanford!!

Anyway I'm still for you guys because I believe that this team has the best spirit, strength and the processor power to beat the aussies, bear in mind where I live I'm on the australians doorstep!!

Very close then for a stealth attack. We are with you in spirit. God Speed fine soldier... wait. wrong forum.

This may sound a little goofy but aside from the fact that I tend to be a little trusting of most things except government programs that aren't designed to expire when their usefulness runs out I believe it just based on things that I've seen written in the folding forum. Most of this is from the folding 1 forum, but I've read several threads there by members, many of whom are interested only in the science, that actually discuss the merits, results, and the science behind this project. I don't have to know what they are talking about. This project may not be making headlines across the country but it is large enough that people in the profession will stand up and take notice and I have no doubt that many have seen/used the client and have looked at the results being created. If there was anything in any of the results to indicate that this project was anything but 100% above board it would have been exposed by now, just given the fact that a great deal of the info created can be seen and deciphered by somebody who knows what they're looking at. ie. If they were faking it then the project would have made headlines.
Besides, we only have about 10-20,000 cpu which isn't enough in this type of a project for the federal gov't to worry about. They can buy a new ASCII WHite any time they want. :)

[gsxr750]

lenny brought up a good point.
Not to said that I don't beleive or any thing such that. but have any of folding members ever see what the out come or result turned out to be.
Or does any of folding members ever see the result applied in real life?

I been reading and watching folding board also thinking about joining.

:) :) :)

[lennytiger]

some good points to my comment have come back, can anyone point me to some sites that have the science stuff on them?

[lennytiger]

Originally posted by Ploaf


Very close then for a stealth attack. We are with you in spirit. God Speed fine soldier... wait. wrong forum.



HAHA LOL

Well like I said we have a little fun on the side, as well as seious folding!!

merry christmas to all! :)

[KFB]

any script or binary that you run on your machine is a risk - yet many of us run an OS from a company that we find less than credible (Microsloshed). while i am definitely not a molecular biologist, i too wonder about the actual work being done by F@H. so i visited the folding.stanford.edu webpages and read up a bit. i can not fully comprehend the science behind it (only had Bio 1 in high school and none in college), but i do understand that amino acids are the building blocks of protein and that F@H attempts to understand the way that these building blocks build themselves into proteins. my ignorance limits my understanding to that at this point, but i am happy to donate my CPU time to such an effort being undertaken by as reputable an organization as Stanford. if they (PandeGroup/Stanford) say that it is helping cure alzheimers then i believe them and it makes me feel good to know i am helping in my own little geeky way. (don't forget that F@H is also researching for future nanomachines - now that's cool stuff) so i guess F@H could really be an activity and keylogger that is returning all the info on my computer's activities to Big Brother - but i am not that paranoid or self-important.