January 18, 2013
Link: Any sufficiently technical expert is indistinguishable from a witch
As Arthur C Clarke puts it, "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic". Here is my corollary: "Any sufficiently technical expert is indistinguishable from a witch". People fear magic they don’t understand, and distrust those who wield that magic. Things that seem reasonable to technical geeks seem illegal to the non-technical. The non-technical think they understand MAC addresses and address blocking, but they don’t. Thus, Aaron’s indictment might seem a fair interpretation of the law, but it’s a wholly unfair interpretation of technology.
As Arthur C Clarke puts it, "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic". Here is my corollary: "Any sufficiently technical expert is indistinguishable from a witch". People fear magic they don’t understand, and distrust those who wield that magic. Things that seem reasonable to technical geeks seem illegal to the non-technical. The non-technical think they understand MAC addresses and address blocking, but they don’t. Thus, Aaron’s indictment might seem a fair interpretation of the law, but it’s a wholly unfair interpretation of technology.
The CFAA is hopelesly broad. Thanks to it I have broken federal law on countless occasions by doing things no sane person would consider a crime.
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