Anon | Let's get a few facts straight First, the "event" occurred over the period of 21-24 September. I published my "replacement column" on 14 October.
Second, I didn't discover a[nother] flaw in an AV vendor's product line. My "EIS project" (1997-1999) uncovered many flaws in AV products and, yes, I suffered a character assassination attempt because of it -- after I turned down a bribe, of course. See »sun.soci.niu.edu/~crypt/other/fakeware.htm for details. I've been working since 2000 on an experiment [purposely mis]named "House 2.0," see »www.wired.com/news/technology/0,···,00.html for more insight.
I merely uncovered something very embarrassing about an AV vendor. And I do mean "very." I contacted them by email to ask if they wanted to "clarify" anything. The vendor asked me for my phone number, which I readily gave. (See »www.politechbot.com/p-02681.html to learn where I was during this period.) We spoke for about an hour, and the vendor apologized [my word] because he considered it necessary to notify the feds for national security reasons. I personally reminded him at the end of the phone call to notify the feds if he considered it so utterly important. A representative from a very powerful agency left a message on voicemail, pleading with me to return the call. We failed to connect until well after the cops showed up. (Hint: I let the person stew for awhile. Not very professional on my part.)
I'm winding down from a very long day and watching VH1 at approx. 3am when a federal cop knocked on my door. I put on a pair of pants and invited him in. Two more stepped in from positions beyond the door, which surprised the hell out of me. I remember saying "I guess you kept these two hidden behind your good intentions, eh?" We waited for about an hour and talked jovially until a federal agent arrived. The agent seemed rather bored by my side of story, but we (ahem) discussed the merits of killing the upcoming column. I won't deny it -- I needlessly postured on the argument of using national security to cover up embarrassment.
The agent never demanded anything and never insinuated bad things might happen if I failed to comply. The agent acted far more professionally during the interview than I did. (That's the embarrassing thing on my part, the one where I claimed I couldn't mention it for national security reasons. Does anyone here NOT see the sarcasm in my using the claim of national security to hide my own embarrassment?)
Later I realize the AV vendor gave me an opportunity to squelch an unimportant story -- which itself is an important story. In chess terms, I'd sacrifice a pawn for a rook.
But I DON'T like the idea of someone using my patriotism as a pawn.
When I finally spoke to the government rep who deals with the AV vendor, I received another plea to squelch the column. I embraced the request, and I further agreed not to name the agency & vendor.
This of course leads one to ask "why give up the vendor's name?" The answer is simple: naming the agency would reveal the vendor's identity, and vice versa. They're almost joined at the hip these days, and I don't make this claim lightly. Read »vmyths.com/rant.cfm?id=416&page=4 to understand why the antivirus cartel qualifies as a [powerful] quasi-government agency.
...I wanted to go with a full-court press after publishing my "replacement column," but my cohort George Smith talked me out of it. He asked a simple question: "what's really new here?" AV firms have gone out of their way in the past to destroy what they can't control. They tried a new tactic this time. I have to believe they'll try something else in the future.
It took awhile to realize Smith is right. I've waited for over a decade to earn my true 15 nano-minutes of fame. This event isn't it, but it'll add some serious fuel when the real day comes. I can continue to wait.
The old saw says "what doesn't kill a critic makes him stronger." The vendor didn't know what they were doing, and they inoculated me instead of poisoning me. But hey, I'm pissed and I wrote a three-part series I didn't feel compelled to write before now. Check it out at »vmyths.com/rant.cfm?id=416&page=4 if interested.
One last thing: don't worry about the original column. It's nothing big and I sacrificed it without a seconthird thought. As embarrassing as it was, it never would have gone beyond the realm of Vmyths. The real story is the AV industry's role within the government. I'm glad I stumbled over that.
Rob |
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 Jamming777$Time Is Running OutPremium
join:2001-07-25
USA | Thanks for getting the story out!!! Each of us owe you a debt of gratitude. Sometimes, getting a knock on the door at 3am is more than just a wake-up call. I think you can cut yourself a little slack about "the embarrassing thing on my part". After all it is hardly was expected that some sniveling AV vendor rep and "his joined at the hip" government bureaucrat would be motivated to do that. It is sometimes hard having to work for those three letter agencies.
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Jamming
EL/MS with 1294 down/324 up |
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Rob, thanks for stopping by. Iowa, huh? Long way from O'Fallon.  |
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Glad you got my email Rob, maybe others also... to come and visit us.
TS with crypto and some other certificates are important to keep in "their" right place. Many of us carried that burden into civilian life. Now the country has to rethink that whole position as it applies to the civilian population. Mistakes will be made, but the general feeling is that too many mistakes have been made in the past to protect and secure the lifestyle and livelihood of our people.
You are a good Sport in all of this, anger, fear, frustration, when you are only out to seek the TRUTH.
May I suggest you also ask for your file and other type of documentation at the appropriate Government Offices.
The FOIA is still in place as of today, and it might be to your advantage to have any documents that are out there with your name on it.
Be Well
[text was edited by author 2001-11-08 08:19:21] |
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Anon | reply to Anon
Must not have been all that bad, or they wouldn't have knocked first. |
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| Well I like the Truth also, so I have a few Iowa freepers (no plug) working on the 3AM visit. We either have cookies and milk or lots of tired people that night, it is all logged some place, nice thing about the government you can always find records, even if 6 minutes of the tape is erased, but then again, is it Really erased or just sitting there waiting for some one to find it??????? |
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bah6
join:2001-04-22
Brooklyn, NY | reply to Anon
I would have took the bribe.  something LOL |
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Anon | reply to Jamming777$
Oh, you don't owe me a debt of gratitude! (blush) I appreciate it, though.
If I'd raised First Amendment issues, then my original column would've come out in addition to the replacement column. But think of it this way: "be careful what you wish for..." They wanted the original column to go away, and I obliged them. God knows I tried to talk them out of it.
If you know your WWII history, you know the White House begged photographers not to depict Roosevelt in his wheelchair. The nation needed a "strong" president for national security reasons, they claimed -- and the media's help contributed to his unprecedented [some would say unwarranted] fourth election. Some people now make the same argument for the antivirus industry. We need our cyber-saviors to look strong in the face of adversity, even if unwarranted.
I hid the First Amendment up my sleeve when the vendor threatened to call the feds and I made my stand on national security.
(For those of you with military backgrounds, let me fill you in on a little secret. The U.S. National Command Authority blindly trusts a group of experts who never filled out a DD form 398-2. Some of these experts carry Russian or Chinese passports. They regularly deliver virus technology to an oppressive Chinese government. And they place the needs of their cartel above the needs of the U.S. National Command Authority. Our government blindly trusts them like an addict blindly trusts his pusher. I don't make these claims lightly.)
Going back to one interesting comment -- true: I haven't divulged everything. I keep some things in the dark for reasons beyond the scope of this incident. Wheelert knows enough about me to speculate...
Rob |
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Jamming777$Time Is Running OutPremium
join:2001-07-25
USA | said by rsnbrgr:
If I'd raised First Amendment issues, then my original column would've come out in addition to the replacement column. But think of it this way: "be careful what you wish for..." They wanted the original column to go away, and I obliged them. God knows I tried to talk them out of it.
Sounds like you would be completely protected by the Whistleblower's Act, if they wanted to push things. This is not to say, that you should not want to act as a responsible member of the press, there are not very many of them these days, good to know there is at least one. If anything, this has given me a good chance to get to know who is reporting the news about an issue I see as important.
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Jamming
EL/MS with 1294 down/324 up |
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Anon | Nah, the whistle-blower act has nothing to do with it. It's just a case of an embarrassed vendor who called the feds. Everyone in the U.S. seemed on edge for a couple of weeks after the attacks.
Heck, I quit boinking Saddam's wives because I thought they might be spies. But then I apologized to them... (I hope I chose the right emoticon for that joke!) |
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I can't wait to find out the name of this company!! I'll make sure anybody I come in contact with NEVER buys their products. AND I DON'T HAVE A SHORT MEMORY!
P.S. I have also signed the SF 312 document. |
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