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Warez: The Infrastructure and Aesthetics of Piracy (2021)

220 points · 120 comments · succinct_ideas

  1. lm411 · · focus · HN ↗
    The Warez scene was an absolute blast. I made some of the best friends of my early teenage years there, both online and online/offline.

    Unfortunately it came to a sudden end after I got a little too cocky and persistently took and re-took control of a smallish US telecom companies network, and the RCMP came knocking on my door for the FBI. That was largely unrelated to Warez but the advice given to me was that I should probably stop that as well. Thankfully I was too young to be charged with any of it at that time.

    I do regret the massive headaches I must have caused the system administrators at the telecom company. Sorry guys. I have repaid my bad karma many times.

    1. shevy-java · · focus · HN ↗
      The question is whether you find it ok that the FBI comes sniffing after you. Personally I don't find it ok at all. I don't see any of that as a crime either. The legislation is clearly written by corporations and lobbyists acting as lawyers. That's another reason why I think open source is preferrable - that way they are replaced indirectly by not depending on them in the first place, meaning, as a trade-off towards how the society is currently structured. Hopefully it will become more sane again in the future. Back then, though, say in the 1990s or early 2000s, the "vibe" of warez also was "look how great ILLEGAL can be".
      1. enneff · · focus · HN ↗
        You don’t think it should be illegal to hack a telecom network and take control of it?
        1. ExoticPearTree · · focus · HN ↗
          Nope. It means the people running it did not do a good job configuring and securing it.
          1. darkwater · · focus · HN ↗
            This is the epitome of the "blame the victim" culture.
            1. ExoticPearTree · · focus · HN ↗
              When it comes to computers and software, yes. They need to do a better job not letting others screw them over.
              1. foco_tubi · · focus · HN ↗
                It’s an interesting view. In this case you are claiming the victims are bound to the creator/vendor of the software/service, not the hacker?
                1. ExoticPearTree · · focus · HN ↗
                  In a nutshell, yes.

                  My issue is that software security is not taken seriously most of the time because features are more important than spending a little more time on code quality.

                  The hacker is not the one writing buggy software.

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