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Hacking legend Kevin Mitnick dies aged 59 | Information Age

July 24, 2023/in Computer Security

Kevin Mitnick at a 2010 conference. Image: Campus Party México/Wikimedia, By Campus Party México – https://www.flickr.com/photos/campuspartymexico/4889638678/, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=98590254

Kevin David Mitnick, the social engineer, hacker and cybersecurity trailblazer died last week aged 59.

Mitnick, who was described as a ‘computer terrorist’ by the US Justice Department during their hunt for him in the early 1990s, served two jail sentences for breaching computer systems in 1988 and 1999 before becoming a high profile cybersecurity expert.

In his biography, Mitnick described his curiosity as a driving force, saying: “All of this was really to satisfy my own curiosity, see what I could do, and find out secret information about operating systems, cell phones, and anything else that stirred my curiosity.”

His lifetime obsession with exploring systems and technology started with him figuring out the paper transfer systems on the 1970s Los Angeles transit network and his understanding of social engineering was established with his coaxing where to buy the required ticket punch from a friendly bus driver.

During his high school years he went on to break into the DEC computer systems and, like many other hackers before him, exploit the analogue telephone network through whistles and tones.

His convictions came after his breaking into bigger targets, with his first conviction coming after copying DEC’s software and his period on the run after breaching parole and breaking into AT&T’s voicemail system.

During his second stint in prison, he became the focus of the ‘Free Kevin’ movement which was one the early campaigns of the then nascent world wide web.

The Free Kevin campaign was fuelled by some of the more outlandish claims about his abilities including the assertion he could start a nuclear war through whistling into the NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense) modems.

Following his release after five years in prison, he embarked on a career as a white hat hacker and security consultant, he also joined the public speaker circuit and visited Australia a number of times, including a 2016 trip where he claimed that, in…

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Kevin Mitnick: Legendary computer hacker Kevin Mitnick dies at 59

July 22, 2023/in Computer Security

CNN
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Kevin Mitnick, one of the most famous hackers in the history of cybersecurity, died over the weekend at age 59 after a more than year-long battle with pancreatic cancer, his family said in a published obituary.

Before his death on July 16, Mitnick’s hacking sprees were legendary, and multiple films were inspired by him.

The first, “WarGames” starring Matthew Broderick, was partially based on allegations that Mitnick successfully hacked the computer systems at North American Aerospace Defense Command as a teenager. He denied ever having done so.

Mitnick’s restless curiosity caught up with him when he was arrested for stealing $1 million in proprietary software from Digital Equipment Corporation in 1988. Mitnick was sentenced to a year in prison and three years of probation, but a new arrest warrant was issued in 1995 for violating that probation. Mitnick went on the run, breaking into the computer systems of multiple corporations, cell phone companies, and educational institutions, according to the federal indictment against him.

Through it all, Mitnick and his defenders insisted he was harmless, not actually trying to hurt anyone or pursue financial gain.

“I was an old-school hacker, doing it for intellectual curiosity,” Mitnick told Wired magazine in a 2008 interview. But federal authorities were so concerned about his capabilities that when he was incarcerated again in 1995, Mitnick told CNN he was held in solitary confinement for a time out of concern that even proximity to a telephone could allow him to continue hacking.

Mitnick and federal prosecutors agreed to a plea deal in 1999 to seven criminal counts, including wire fraud and causing damage to computers. The deal included a 46-month prison sentence and a ban on being “employed in any capacity wherein he has access to computers or computer-related equipment or software” during a period of probation, but he was released in 2000 due to credit for time already served.

Mitnick published a memoir on his hacking career, “Ghost in the Wires:…

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Mitnick, hacker turned security guru, dies – Times News Online

July 21, 2023/in Computer Security

Kevin Mitnick, whose pioneering antics tricking employees in the 1980s and 1990s into helping him steal software and services from big phone and tech companies made him the most celebrated U.S. hacker, has died at age 59.

Mitnick died Sunday in Las Vegas after a 14-month battle with pancreatic cancer, said Stu Sjouwerman, CEO of the security training firm KnowBe4, where Mitnick was chief hacking officer.

His colorful career – from student tinkerer to FBI-hunted fugitive, imprisoned felon and finally respected cybersecurity professional, public speaker and author tapped for advice by U.S. lawmakers and global corporations – mirrors the evolution of society’s grasp of the nuances of computer hacking.

Through Mitnick’s professional trajectory, and what many consider the misplaced prosecutorial zeal that put him behind bars for nearly five years until 2000, the public has learned how to better distinguish serious computer crime from the mischievous troublemaking of youths hellbent on proving their hacking prowess.

Much fanfare accompanied Mitnick’s high-profile arrest in 1995, three years after he’d skipped probation on a previous computer break-in charge. The government accused him of causing millions of dollars in damages to companies including Motorola, Novell, Nokia and Sun Microsystems by stealing software and altering computer code.

But federal prosecutors had difficulty gathering evidence of major crimes, and after being jailed for nearly four years, Mitnick reached a plea agreement in 1999 that credited him for time served.

Upon his January 2000 release from prison, Mitnick told reporters his “were simple crimes of trespass.” He said “I wanted to know as much as I could find out about how phone networks worked.”

He was initially barred for three years from using computers, modems, cellphones or anything else that could give him internet access, and from public speaking. Those requirements were gradually eased but he wasn’t allowed back online until December 2002.

Mitnick’s…

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As Nest Secure officially dies, Google offers free ADT systems

April 8, 2023/in Mobile Security

What you need to know

Nest Secure is being officially sunset on April 8, 2024. Units will not receive any updates after that time and it will cease working in the Nest app.
Google is offering free upgrades to the new ADT Self Setup system for some customers.
Dropcam and Works with Nest programs are also being discontinued.

Nest Secure users will officially have to look for a proper replacement to their beloved home security system before April 8, 2024. After that date, Nest Secure systems will stop receiving security updates and will no longer be available in the Nest app, meaning they will officially become completely unusable.

Nest Secure was officially discontinued in October 2020 (opens in new tab) but has been supported and usable in the old Nest app ever since that announcement. Now, users will need to pick from one of the best smart home security systems (opens in new tab) as a proper replacement but Google is hoping you’ll continue sticking with their latest venture, instead.

The recently announced ADT Self Setup (opens in new tab) is being offered for free to some existing Nest Secure customers. Google didn’t specify which users would be eligible for a free upgrade so we’ve reached out to them to find out more. We’ll update this article when we find out. For now, expect an email from Google if you are an eligible Nest Secure customer.

In addition to Nest Secure being sunset, Dropcam support will officially end on April 8, 2024, as well. Dropcam existed long before Nest cameras and is some of the oldest smart home security hardware on the market with active support and updates. Current Dropcam users with a Nest Aware subscription will be offered a 50% coupon on a new Nest Cam which is currently our top pick for best wireless home security camera (opens in new tab).

Lastly, the Works with Nest program is officially ending on September 29, 2023. Google announced that Works with Nest would be going away way back in 2019 (opens in new tab) but the company has kept it around for several years to ensure a smooth transition to new standards like Matter (opens in new tab). Google says it is working with parners that are still using Works with Nest APIs to ensure those products continue…

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