Suspected LulzSec Ringleader Arrested in Essex

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Costs trickle down? That's what your textbooks say, but when profits are in the billions and new costs are in the tens of thousands, there's a little room to eat it if they're not completely greedy bastards.
 
[citation][nom]nebun[/nom]they are trying to stand up to corrupt businesses and governments....i just wished their collateral damage wasn't so high....what the need to do is just bring down the networks...and not steal data....they are playing with peoples lives...oh well, i guess it can't really be done without collateral damage[/citation]

So, next time there's a major war and someone decides to drop another atomic bomb to end the war, may you be living in the city that disintegrates. I assume you're okay with that since it's just necessary collateral damage and all....
 
[citation][nom]Jalek[/nom]Costs trickle down? That's what your textbooks say, but when profits are in the billions and new costs are in the tens of thousands, there's a little room to eat it if they're not completely greedy bastards.[/citation]

Because the top execs would actually take a financial hit for the good of the nation.... HA! Remember the bailout? They gave themselves bonuses while lots of people lost their jobs. Of COURSE it will trickle down to us.

The trickle down effect only works with cost, not savings.
 
[citation][nom]thegreathuntingdolphin[/nom] How do I know they aren't really hardcore? They pick easy targets. Attacking US companies and government websites is easy. You might be arrested but that's it. Now if they actually attacked the really corrupt governments like North Korea, China, or Russia, then I would be somewhat impressed. But they won't because those countries might actually kill them.Right because Lulzsec wouldn't lie ever. Of course they wouldn't try to save face! Of course they would gladly admit that one of their members was taken out! /endsarcasm. This guy may not have been the mastermind behind lulzsec but wasn't this the same guy who used to be with Anon and hacked some of their stuff a month or so ago?One thing I do not understand is why everyone accepts their motives at face value.[/citation]

You are 100% spot on. These are the people that cannot stand up for themselves, so they hide behind their keyboards. They are sheep following crafty hacker. These are major crimes they are committing, they are pissing off very important, and really smart people. Just like any serial felon....eventually you get caught. One of your own will rat you out and/or expose your underground network.

 
[citation][nom]alidan[/nom]well, i personally, am completely board of all things life has to offer me. they are making their lives more interesting. if i could do what they do with little risk of getting caught, i would to... its kind of like how an arsinest looks at the seen they make, not just the fire they cause, except with the internet.[/citation]





[citation][nom]stryk55[/nom]You could learn how to spell "arsonist", "bored", and "internet". Maybe that would give you some purpose in life...[/citation]

Don't forget "Scene".
 
lulzsec and anonymous unite...

Anyone else get a mental picture of a bunch of 12 year old Power Rangers pushing their cereal box decoder rings together and screaming "SCRIPT KIDDIES POWER UP!!!!"
 
Don't vote for the people that make the laws we don't like? Ever heard of lying? Obama was going to bring our troops home. Oops. We've had access to solar power for decades but we keep yelling about getting off oil dependence. WHEN IS THAT GONNA HAPPEN?

And the only way people can make a decision to vote or not vote for someone, to buy or not buy a product, is to have an education - something barely a tenth of the US population has, and something the country refuses to pay for. Since this isn't a true democracy, the political parties choose who runs for president - not the people.

And then let me ask you this: Do you think Congress would vote to liquidate themselves if it provided a visible, immediate, and lasting benefit to the country's population? I think not. They "love" their civil service, but not enough to benefit anyone other than themselves.

Good for lulz and anon. I hope they do something at the wikileaks scale for all of us.
 
[citation][nom]korsen[/nom]Don't vote for the people that make the laws we don't like? Ever heard of lying? Obama was going to bring our troops home. Oops. We've had access to solar power for decades but we keep yelling about getting off oil dependence. WHEN IS THAT GONNA HAPPEN? And the only way people can make a decision to vote or not vote for someone, to buy or not buy a product, is to have an education - something barely a tenth of the US population has, and something the country refuses to pay for. Since this isn't a true democracy, the political parties choose who runs for president - not the people. And then let me ask you this: Do you think Congress would vote to liquidate themselves if it provided a visible, immediate, and lasting benefit to the country's population? I think not. They "love" their civil service, but not enough to benefit anyone other than themselves. Good for lulz and anon. I hope they do something at the wikileaks scale for all of us.[/citation]

how is a "true democracy" better than our republic?
the only reason why our current and former administrations have screwed the pooch, is because they have bypassed the founding form of our republic and constitution. Our republic was designed to protect the individual. how does a "true democracy" do that?

"The great challenge of democracy, as the Founders understood it, was to restrict and structure the government to secure the rights articulated in the Declaration of Independence — preventing tyranny while preserving liberty. The solution was to create a strong, energetic government of limited authority. Its powers were enumerated in a written constitution, separated into functions and responsibilities and further divided between national and state governments in a system of federalism. The result was a framework of limited government and a vast sphere of freedom, leaving ample room for republican self-government. "

source: http://www.heritage.org/Research/Commentary/2010/02/A-Republic-If-You-Want-It

go there and learn how America was supposed to be, not what the progressives have turned it into.
 
[citation][nom]stm1185[/nom]I half hope these hackers succeed in bringing down the governments, just so I can watch as they realize they have no skills of use in the anarchy that follows and find themselves starving to death.[/citation]
Agreed.

...

Wait a minute, I'm a programmer too, uh oh... Quick, must learn the basics of hunting/auto mechanics/electrical engineering/sewing/cooking/carpentry/etc.
 
Geeks and gamers, which I assume make up most of the readership of Tom's Hardware, seem to have a lack of understanding of politics, economics and civil disobedience. An understanding of those three areas would make lulzsec's actions clear in their intent. I read the comments here in dismay, because the work that's being done on our behalf is misunderstood, otherwise it could bring much needed change.
 
Hm... I think they should bring back corporal punishment for kiddies like this. No sense in feeding them with our taxpayer dollars, or Britain's taxpayer dollars for however long. Getting publicly beaten would be a great crime deterrent for spoiled grown-up children.
 
[citation][nom]pocketdrummer[/nom]So, next time there's a major war and someone decides to drop another atomic bomb to end the war, may you be living in the city that disintegrates. I assume you're okay with that since it's just necessary collateral damage and all....[/citation]
there is always collateral damage, no matter how much you try to avoid it, get used to it
 
My my, I see a LOT of people taking the sadistic approach, crowing about the sort of torture and assault the suspect may receive if incarcerated. Isn't that incredibly civil of us? We're clearly the shining beacon of what a good civilization is all about.

I must say that perhaps for the gaming-smart, politics-dumb readership here, the subject of any sort of civil disobedience, or anything that remotely suggests anything wrong within the system they cower to for stability, is something of extreme sensitivity. I would suggest that if a subject is one a person is highly emotionally sensitive towards, that perhaps it's in their best interests to avoid discussing it, since it's obvious that one would not be able to make clear, level-headed statements of opinion and discussion when they're so heated.

Case-in-point: everyone's dogmatic clinging to the image of Anon and its spin-offs that are spun by the popular media: pimply, pubescent basement dwellers... Not entirely unlike "that kid" type you often see attempting to spoil your night of gaming on Xbox Live or the sort. You know the type... The kind that constantly spews out curse words to attempt to seem "mature," in stark irony where all the real adults are calm and refrain from virtually all expletives?

While I'm not 100% positive on the exact nature of LulzSec, I'd imagine them to be at least somewhat akin to Anonymous... Which has shown themselves to be anything but the crafted image people have cooked up purely on its "hateability." Anonymous has managed, through a variety of means (not always hacking) to bring to light a number of gross, ignored crimes being committed against innocent people. Most of their current hacking-related actions ARE, in fact, targeted toward oppressive regimes: they've had a strong hand in the Arab Spring uprisings, using attacks to pierce the blockades dictators have put up to prevent their own citizens from seeing the real news from the outside world. Obviously, you can't support current American foreign policies if you oppose this sort of action; it's the very basis of what the U.S. State Department has termed, "21st Century Statecraft."

While it's clear that while LulzSec seems to be at least a bit less principled in their targeting, I must say that I feel very wary at the angry, narrow-minded "I HATE THEM" sort of responses I'm seeing towards this sort of activity. I can understand someone being upset over not having had access to PlayStation Online for over a month, but where's the anger toward Sony for leaving their network vulnerable to an SQL injection, one of the simplest hacking attacks in the book? To know that all along, for the past few years, they had your credit card information, unencrypted, and virtually undefended?, Sure, PSN was free, but does it seem like a fair trade to leave yourself open to easy identity theft (and Sony hiding this fact) for years just to play PS3 games online?

Naturally, I'm sure there were tons of attempted whistle-blowers at Sony... But as history have shown us, when they can, the "big, important people" will try to push off the whistle-blowers: why make changes when things are going just fine (and profitable) for you, and any change could mean reduced profits because you're spending money on upgrades? To me, it seems that this course of actions seems to be the only logical conclusion: all warnings get ignored until the big hit actually comes. Personally, I'm a bit relieved that it came from a flamboyant group that did it "for the lulz" rather than a true criminal organization that would've actually stolen all those identities to fuel their own operations... Or worse, used the stolen funds to fuel terrorism or dictatorial suppression.

In cases like these, "righteous anger" really doesn't get you anywhere; amorphous, faceless forces can't be deterred. "Internet tough guy" talk about perpetrators being assaulted in the jail shower do nothing but make you feel better about yourself, and catharsis really doesn't have a place in logical discussion. Being intelligent and thinking over what could prevent these sort of assaults in the first place CAN make a real difference.

(Also, I'm mostly expecting this comment to be voted to -20 by tomorrow)

[citation][nom]utengineer[/nom]they hide behind their keyboards.[/citation]
Just like all the armchair lawyers here and around the Internet?

[citation][nom]bobusboy[/nom]"Britain's Serious Organized Crime Agency Seriously?[/citation]
It's been around since something like 2006 or so, if memory serves. So yes, very serious.
 
As I see, most commentators opposing hackers; accusing them of doing a wrong thing by breaching security of the websites. BUT who determines what’s wrong and right??? From hacker’s point of view, he is doing right thing. From your point of view its bad. Without absolute no one can judge other person based on your own opinion. (and don’t tell me majority is right, not true. Ex: majority voted for Hitler)
 
@nottheking,

I believe you missed that fact that stealing is still stealing, regardless of the motives. I have to agree that the public beating comment was a bit extreme, but i still believe that people who end up in prison deserve exactly what they have coming.

Becoming what you seek to exploit (identity thief) does not make you any better than the thief who was doing it for more than "the lulz", it only makes you a thief.

Under your logic, almost no crimes should be punishable, after all most of the crimes committed are done so by people who think they deserve the money they're taking or the revenge they're seeking is justifiable.

Whatever their cause may be they should find a legal method to promote it, one without any collateral damage to innocent civilians! Here's a simple solution, have some morals.

Here is a task for you nottheking, I would like ten reasons which make LulzSec's crimes justifiable. On top of that I would like to read five positive products that resulted from your beloved hacker group stealing information and posting it to the internet, giving the criminals that actually intend to steal our hard earned cash easy access to the information they seek. Here's a quote from your freedom fighters (sarcasm intended), "Splendid old chap, yes, yes, quite. In other news, we're loading leak bay #1 with stolen goods. #AntiSec,". Quote taken from this article: http://www.tomsguide.com/us/Anonymous-LulzSec-Web-Ninjas-TeamPoison-Doxing,news-11595.html
 
[citation][nom]Jason Bourne[/nom](Ex: majority voted for Hitler)[/citation]
Actually, that's incorrect. While Hitler's NSDAP succeeded in getting a PLURALITY of the votes at 37.8%, this was only enough to get him 230/608 seats in the Riechstag. The response was that the 222 socialist & communist members united with the remaining, generally-centrist members to leave him the minority party. Furthermore, Hitler actually LOST the Presidential election to the more-centrist, Von Hindenburg.

It wasn't until after the Reichstag fire of 1933 that Hitler essentially began a coup, first succeeding in duping everyone into believing his communist conspiracy theory, and hence was able to run a RIGGED election in 1933, where he STILL only got 43.9% of the vote, (even with almost all of the very-popular communists and socialists arrested/murdered) and had to rely on some arm-wrenching and coercion to get a coalition to put him barely over 50%... And even that wasn't cemented until he passed his Enabling Act to allow him to circumvent an all-too-volatile legislature... And no people voted for that.

[citation][nom]mlCaouette[/nom]@nottheking,I believe you missed that fact that stealing is still stealing, regardless of the motives. I have to agree that the public beating comment was a bit extreme, but i still believe that people who end up in prison deserve exactly what they have coming.Becoming what you seek to exploit (identity thief) does not make you any better than the thief who was doing it for more than "the lulz", it only makes you a thief. Under your logic, almost no crimes should be punishable, after all most of the crimes committed are done so by people who think they deserve the money they're taking or the revenge they're seeking is justifiable. Whatever their cause may be they should find a legal method to promote it, one without any collateral damage to innocent civilians! Here's a simple solution, have some morals. Here is a task for you nottheking, I would like ten reasons which make LulzSec's crimes justifiable. On top of that I would like to read five positive products that resulted from your beloved hacker group stealing information and posting it to the internet, giving the criminals that actually intend to steal our hard earned cash easy access to the information they seek. Here's a quote from your freedom fighters (sarcasm intended), "Splendid old chap, yes, yes, quite. In other news, we're loading leak bay #1 with stolen goods. #AntiSec,". Quote taken from this article: http://www.tomsguide.com/us/Anonym [...] 11595.html[/citation]
Did I once actually state that their crimes were justifiable? No, I didn't support them at all: there's a distinction between chiding the most virulent opponents of a position, and backing said position. Similarly, I must chide even you for implying that hackers who get violated in prison deserve what they have coming, at least if you're an American... (and the crimes this person is being tried for would almost certainly be in American courts) Does not the 8th Amendment prohibit "cruel and unusual punishment?" I think that being subjected to the random violation of one's own body by fellow inmates to be something that almost all of us would agree upon as "cruel," much as I think most of us would agree that murdering or stealing is wrong.

I never presented logic that it's not right to punish someone for doing what they think is right... Or, in fact, that it lends any sort of positive quality to their actions: otherwise we'd have to think anything but ill of the actions of, for example, Andrea Yates. (who in 2001 drowned her five children in a bathtub, and later claimed she was saving them from posession by the devil)

However, I did suggest that it "wasn't as bad as it could've been." The Internet is ripe full of plenty of shady figures that, if given the chance, will steal your identity for their own monetary gain: abusing your credit score to tap it out, then vanish, leaving you the victim.

As of yet, I'm not sure if any actual theft has taken place: unless a siezure proves posession, or a future action demonstrates that passwords or credit card numbers were taken, (i.e, actions that would require having them) one cannot ascertain that such claims of "stolen goods" are anything more than braggadocio. Certainly the big companies would prefer the media to portray as if theft had taken place, but they have a vested interest in villifying their attackers as someone far more vile than random hackers or even kiddies who just managed to discover the gaping holes in their computer security.

Similarly, I was also taking clear note of the effective "blamelessness" that people are holding for Sony: they're a company that held the data for millions upon millions of users with an incredible lack of security. Sure, the attackers are criminals for taking anything, but certainly blame should also be held by Sony for putting their customers' data at risk: you'd not find a bank blameless for losing your money just because they sent it all in a conspicuous, unarmored vehicle through a crime-infested ghetto, now would you?

In the Information age, personal, sensitive information is just as valuable as money, so it seems only rightful to demand the companies you do business with to treat it with every bit as much care and security... And hold them accountable when they fail to do so. Case-in-point: the U.S. Congress has grilled Sony and expressed their disapproval over Sony's handling of this quite a bit. Certainly if we're talking about the laws and opinions passed by the government, that has to mean something too.
 
I feel bad for this kid. He's a stupid ass 19-year old that made a stupid ass mistake, and he's gonna pay for it, big time. He attacked a government institution with a lot more smarts, power and resources than fricking lulzsec is ever going to have; regardless of what you think about his motives, he did something that was pretty much incredibly retarded. Not to mention highly illegal.

But to all of you gloat-ers out there, dumb kids are just goan do dumb sh*t. We all were dumb kids at some point or another, and it looks like most of you still are; I for one don't need to laugh at some dumb kid's misfortune to feel good about myself. Imagine if the tables were turned and you were getting buttphukked in a prison cell while some other out-of-shape nerd laughed at you from behind a keyboard. Probably would suck ass, right? Have a little empathy and stop being such a bunch of children.
 
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