Orrin Hatch's Other Ridiculous Copyright Bill... >>
<< People Are Even More Willing To Click On...
 tdicon 
The Textable Tent >>
<< Download In The Store
 | 

Wireless

by Mike Masnick

Fri, Jun 25th 2004 10:38pm





WiFi Criminal Tracked Down Via Other Means

from the oh-yeah,-real-detective-work dept

A few weeks ago we linked to an article from someone freaking out that (gasp!) a virus writer could release a virus from an unsecured WiFi access point and no one would ever be able to track him down. This is a bogus complaint. Most criminals try not to leave a trace of where they came from, and that's what real detective/forensics work is about: tracking them down. So, just because you can't figure out who they were because they were on an access point, you can still get clues, and let traditional detective work take over. That appears to be exactly what the FBI did to track down an online extortionist who used unsecured WiFi access points to secretly send out his demands. The FBI used other clues to figure out who the guy was and caught him that way. It's not clear why some computer security people seem to think that the only clues to computer crimes must also be on the computer.

6 Comments | Leave a Comment

If you liked this post, you may also be interested in...

Reader Comments (rss)

(Flattened / Threaded)

  1.  
    identicon
    Tom, Jun 26th, 2004 @ 8:02am

    Detective work

    Well, it didn't really take a lot of sleuthing to catch this guy -- and certainly not a lot of technical expertise. He was a well-known disgruntled fellow with connections to both the firm and the patent office. He also demanded that the $17 million ransom be made out to his real name (classic knucklehead-in-the-news stuff). Had neither of these things been true, and had he truly randomized his use of unsecured wi-fi connections, he might well have been impossible to trace, no?

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  2.  
    identicon
    Nate, Jun 26th, 2004 @ 11:21am

    Criminals is dumb

    From the article: "The clearest sign came when he issued the seventeen million dollar extortion demand, and instructed the company to 'make the check payable to Myron Tereshchuk.'"
    ROTFLOL

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  3.  
    identicon
    DW, Jun 26th, 2004 @ 7:29pm

    Re: Criminals is dumb

    yup, stupid is as stupid does.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  4.  
    identicon
    John Jorsett, Jun 27th, 2004 @ 3:09pm

    What?

    Clues? Like, "I'm over here! Come get me! My name is Myron Tereshchuk!" If we can arrange for every crook using an open access point to be this much of a bonehead then, yeah, no problemo.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  5.  
    icon
    Mike (profile), Jun 27th, 2004 @ 4:30pm

    Re: What?

    Yes, obviously, this particular guy wasn't all that smart... However, the point remains. Just because you use an open access point, it doesn't mean there aren't ways to track people down.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  6.  
    identicon
    Anonymous Coward, Jun 28th, 2004 @ 12:14am

    What if this turned out to be a plot..

    .. to frame Myron Tereshchuk? Had he not been caught with other evidence I would imagine that he could have claimed that the letter requesting payment to him was merely an effort to throw detectives off the track of the real crimimals who got scared once they discovered they were in over their heads.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]


Add Your Comment

Have a Techdirt Account? Sign in now. Want one? Register here
Get Techdirt’s Daily Email
Save me a cookie
  • Note: A CRLF will be replaced by a break tag (<br>), all other allowable HTML will remain intact
  • Allowed HTML Tags: <b> <i> <a> <em> <br> <strong> <blockquote> <hr> <tt>
Orrin Hatch's Other Ridiculous Copyright Bill... >>
<< People Are Even More Willing To Click On...
 tdicon 
The Textable Tent >>
<< Download In The Store
 | 
Follow Techdirt
Flattr rss rss
A word from our Sponsors...
Sponsored Resource
Essential Reading
Techdirt Reading List
Techdirt Insider Chat

A word from our Sponsors...
Recent Stories

Tuesday

3:01pm: Angry Judge Tells Prenda To Stop Falsifying Alan Cooper's Signature; Calls It Fraud (17)
2:15pm: More Details Emerge On Key Legal Fight Over DMCA Abuse (11)
1:04pm: NYC Says Renting Out Your Place Via Airbnb Is Running An Illegal Hotel (17)
12:01pm: If You Think You Should Actually Own Products You Bought, Now Would Be A Good Time To Call Congress (93)
11:04am: Makers Of Nutella Force Fan Who Created World Nutella Day To Shut It Down [Updated] (39)
10:05am: Kitchen Nightmares Lawyers Threaten Infamous Samy And Amy If They Talk About Their Experience On The Show (23)
9:03am: If You're Going To Illegally Seize Citizens' Cell Phones, At Least Make Sure You're Grabbing The Right Ones (64)
7:41am: DOJ And Dept. Of Education To Colleges: Start Restricting Free Speech On Campus Or Kiss Your Federal Funding Goodbye (80)
5:37am: Retired Lt. Col.: Violent Media Has Bred A Generation Of Killers (87)
3:33am: Why Even Good Hospitals And Doctors Are An Obstacle To Better, Cheaper Healthcare (24)
More arrow
A word from our Sponsors...

Close

Email This