I just finished a week long class on computer security. it was called CEH, certified ethicial hacking. i cannot tell you how much fun this class was. mindboggling, and freakout scary. still, I tried to approach the class with enough curiousity to obtain a beneficial return. It was easy to do with no distractions. the whole class, all guys. and besides, we were pretty much the classic nerds. i loved it. all we were missing were star wars posters and klingon speak. it was like an homage to weird al yankovich.
first off. all systems have flaws and can be vulnerable. updates are important, but seriously need
to keep on top of them. there are so many ways around security. that is the whole gist of the class. learn how to hack in order to make our internal systems stronger. keyloggers can be on anything.during class we learned that wired keyboards can be hacked from over 20 meters away.
second. everything i thought i knew about security, so off. we were literally given thousands of tools to work with, and only a week to learn. i've got my free time taken care of for a while. i don't mind it is interesting to see what would happen. first words from our instructor, you can't stop a hacker. all you can really do is slow him down. so comforting.
third. never ever give anyone your information. no matter what. either through social engineering, or through phishing sites, people will use your information to get money and whatnot. on the net, you can't be trusting, just no way, if you are paranoid good. let that guide you. you can't take the chance. all it takes is one opportunity for them and they will rip your life apart. also, if you don't have a shredder get one. dumpster divers will get anything on you, chances are they already do. but shredd all documents, all those credit card offers you throw away. are treasure for identity thieves. GET A SHREDDER. on that note, make sure you get credit protection and you regularly check your credit activity. don't be nieve enough to think you can't get taken to the cleaners.
fourth. our teacher rocked. he knew his stuff and he would throw in things not in the books. he had alot of experience and effectively answered our questions. on that note, i feel guilty for infecting his computer. let me explain. i asked him if he knew about the antivirus 2008 infecting software. it can be accessed a number of ways. he got curious and was looking for screen shots of the software, blam. he caught it. and it started going through his system. while we were in class! all he was looking at were pictures and it infected him. sometimes that is all it takes. technically it wasn't my fault, but i did give him the idea so i admit partial responsibility.
fifth. hackers are soo cool. good and bad. they know their stuff. good hackers, you often hear about in the news. the best hackers though, you never hear about. they are so good at covering their tracks. you never knew they were there. according to our teacher, everyone asks questions about the motives of hackers, their intent to hack. there are too many answers for that. i'm sure they have their own agendas. most are different. some like chaos, others want money. others like the challenge. some even are just evil. i still think they are cool for perfecting a craft that has so many options. it's like the last great untapped battlefront.
lastly. having a week off of work, but in class, got me behind on my projects. but i so enjoyed it. creating viruses, breaking systems. last day we were given a machine to hack into. most of us did. it was fun. still. i think most people would be surprised at how unsecure their own computers can be. it takes so much time to get this stuff down. but if you think you are safe, you need to think again. you probably have a compromised system, you just don't know it yet.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Monday, October 13, 2008
crazy drivers
so the game this weekend was fun, for only like the second half. the first half of the byu game pretty much blew chunks. it was horrendous. and it wasn't just a good defense on the side of UNM, byu had open looks, they dropped balls and the play calling was questionable. this is the worst half of football i've seen byu play all year. it is a true miracle that they won. We can thank the defense for that. except for the corners, they really need to more experienced players out there. anyways, driving back home i realized that i had inadvertantly classified drivers that just drive me nuts on the road. they are in no particular order. but here goes.
1- spacers. they stop at stop lights and leave about 2 carlengths in front of them. they won't get any closer to the cars in front of them, it's like their phobia.
2-possums. these guys will go slow, and when you try to pass them. they speed up. then when you finally pass them, they slow down again. these can also be classified as punks, jerks, a**holes (trying to be mormon pc here) and any other explative that won't get you speaking to a bishop.
3-cutters. these cut right in front on you when driving, no matter the space between you and the car. these are agressive drivers, lazy drivers. often i'm sure they are on some type of drugs. these guys like to take advantage of nice drivers and are quite good at the 3 finger salute.
4- turners. these guys turn without signalling, or they get in the turn lane when they don't need to be and will often keep going straight. they excel in the tease. these remind of many of the girls i have dated.
5-turtles. these like to get in the fast lane and drive slow. everyone but they know that if people that are faster than you are in the fast lane, and they come up behind you, you pull over to the middle "slower" lanes. but these do not. they often go 10 sometimes 15 miles below everyone else's speed. it would take an act of heaven or their off ramp to get them to move aside. turtles like to clog up the HOV lanes as well. turtles also are natural cutters and show signs of possum characteristics. turtles are the Satan's of the roads. they encompass all the evils of bad driving. outside of the next category. these also remind me of a few girls i've dated.
6- DUI. lets face it, if you are under the influence of anything, get off the road, that includes sleepers, pull over or get a room. drinking, get a designated driver. you've been drinking and you are already stupid. drugs or medication, this is beyond stupid. you don't deserve a license.
7- last and not least. texters. i classified this with cell phone use because they are using the same type of device and both need to be hauled off to jail. they did a study on the influence of driving and texting, and they rated on a dangerous scale comparable if not worse than someone under the influence.
while driving back there were about 4 of my 7 on the road. i know i need to be patience with others around me on the road. something i've got to work on. fortunately i got back home ok. unfornately some of these people are still on the road.
1- spacers. they stop at stop lights and leave about 2 carlengths in front of them. they won't get any closer to the cars in front of them, it's like their phobia.
2-possums. these guys will go slow, and when you try to pass them. they speed up. then when you finally pass them, they slow down again. these can also be classified as punks, jerks, a**holes (trying to be mormon pc here) and any other explative that won't get you speaking to a bishop.
3-cutters. these cut right in front on you when driving, no matter the space between you and the car. these are agressive drivers, lazy drivers. often i'm sure they are on some type of drugs. these guys like to take advantage of nice drivers and are quite good at the 3 finger salute.
4- turners. these guys turn without signalling, or they get in the turn lane when they don't need to be and will often keep going straight. they excel in the tease. these remind of many of the girls i have dated.
5-turtles. these like to get in the fast lane and drive slow. everyone but they know that if people that are faster than you are in the fast lane, and they come up behind you, you pull over to the middle "slower" lanes. but these do not. they often go 10 sometimes 15 miles below everyone else's speed. it would take an act of heaven or their off ramp to get them to move aside. turtles like to clog up the HOV lanes as well. turtles also are natural cutters and show signs of possum characteristics. turtles are the Satan's of the roads. they encompass all the evils of bad driving. outside of the next category. these also remind me of a few girls i've dated.
6- DUI. lets face it, if you are under the influence of anything, get off the road, that includes sleepers, pull over or get a room. drinking, get a designated driver. you've been drinking and you are already stupid. drugs or medication, this is beyond stupid. you don't deserve a license.
7- last and not least. texters. i classified this with cell phone use because they are using the same type of device and both need to be hauled off to jail. they did a study on the influence of driving and texting, and they rated on a dangerous scale comparable if not worse than someone under the influence.
while driving back there were about 4 of my 7 on the road. i know i need to be patience with others around me on the road. something i've got to work on. fortunately i got back home ok. unfornately some of these people are still on the road.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
a "Fair" Weekend
my recap of my recent visit to the REZ.
thursday:
THE DRIVE BACK. rather uneventful, except for having a close call with a semi. i just started passing it, about a third of the way around it, the driver decided to pass the car in front of him. i know i could see him and i was visible, he just came right at me. i slammed the brakes and he barely missed me. the 2 other cars behind me saw the whole thing. i'm sure they had camaras ready to see a huge semi squash my neon. after catching my breath, and taking my emergency heart medication (jk. i really don't have any medication, it was starburst). the drive went by very quickly. the fall colors really bring out the mountain graduer. loved it.
THE CARNIVAL. Right back home. my sister wanted to go to the carnival. they had family night which was awesome, first night for the carnival and prices were one dollar a ticket and rides were one ticket each. besides the dust and a few dlaani's it wasn't too bad. some of those rides really require you to check your pants after each ride. still, it felt great being around so many natives. just felt like home.
friday:
BABYSITTING. pretty much what i did most of friday. my sister is in nursing school and she dropped the kids off at the house. i was asleep on the front room couch when they came in. reminds me of an approaching storm. they rumbled in and bam. all over me. i love them. brynne is a hoot. she is so smart. leah is a very lively and often likes to put me in my place. she couldn't get enough of my beard. i hadn't shaved since saturday. we had several races on who could peel a boiled egg faster. she won 2 out of three. they played video games, watched movies most the day. taryn the youngest was the funnest, just trying to get her to walk was the best part. she does not like the beard.
saturday:
THE PARADE. i usually get up early to save a spot down on the highway. got up at 5:30 and got a necessary shower. got to my location and although people camped on the east side of the highway, the middle part is often open, which was the case. so i laid down my two blankets and started playing a video game. after which i though was an eternity, i checked my watch. 15 minutes!! this is going to be a long morning. which it wasn't. about 6:45 my brother-in-law showed up. and after a breakfast burrito and some gatorade, i was ready for the day. i love watching people show up for events. i do the same thing at football, basketball games. well, everyone got there and the parade started at 9:15am, just the usual crowd of bands and politicians. on the plus side, they increased parade registration and cut the number of floats in half. thank goodness. the best part of the parade, the candy. my niece leah made off like a bandit. like tons of candy and stuff. and she was good at running for it. brynne could have cared less. if the candy was thrown at her and it landed in her lap, she would pick it up. she chased candy the first few minutes, after she had a good two hands full, she picked a spot on the road and proceeded to fill up on candy. she didn't want any more after that. she's so cool.
THE COOKOUT. well, brynne wasn't feeling too good for some reason, so we, meaning the kids went back to my sisters house. soon after everyone came back. then the floodgates opened. the rain started pouring, and it didn't stop. never seen it rain so much on a fair day. it stopped for 5 minutes and then kept going, for the next few hours. we still had our burgers and steaks. it was good to be together as family. the kids kept entertained on the wii system. and i did what i could to keep taryn from killing herself. toddlers get into everything. after eating and everyone settled i finally got taryn to sleep. later that night we just kicked back and digested all the food we ate. spent time watching dvd's with my mom, i'm sure she's a fan now of Pushing Daisies and Supernatural.
sunday:
GOING HOME. always the hardest thing to do. after my goodbyes, i usually find most of my dvd's i brought home. give everyone their goodbye hugs then after a quick personal prayer, i head back to Utah. i usually just leave when i get up. that day i slept in till 7:30. had some eggs and hotdogs for breakfast and left. no problems until colorado, caught the end of a massive storm. then closer to monticello, caught my first sight of the mountains and there it was, all covered in snow. alot of snow. this far south, it was amazing and beautiful. the rain eased up and really had no other problems. just another Fair, but with my family, it is always a great memory.
thursday:
THE DRIVE BACK. rather uneventful, except for having a close call with a semi. i just started passing it, about a third of the way around it, the driver decided to pass the car in front of him. i know i could see him and i was visible, he just came right at me. i slammed the brakes and he barely missed me. the 2 other cars behind me saw the whole thing. i'm sure they had camaras ready to see a huge semi squash my neon. after catching my breath, and taking my emergency heart medication (jk. i really don't have any medication, it was starburst). the drive went by very quickly. the fall colors really bring out the mountain graduer. loved it.
THE CARNIVAL. Right back home. my sister wanted to go to the carnival. they had family night which was awesome, first night for the carnival and prices were one dollar a ticket and rides were one ticket each. besides the dust and a few dlaani's it wasn't too bad. some of those rides really require you to check your pants after each ride. still, it felt great being around so many natives. just felt like home.
friday:
BABYSITTING. pretty much what i did most of friday. my sister is in nursing school and she dropped the kids off at the house. i was asleep on the front room couch when they came in. reminds me of an approaching storm. they rumbled in and bam. all over me. i love them. brynne is a hoot. she is so smart. leah is a very lively and often likes to put me in my place. she couldn't get enough of my beard. i hadn't shaved since saturday. we had several races on who could peel a boiled egg faster. she won 2 out of three. they played video games, watched movies most the day. taryn the youngest was the funnest, just trying to get her to walk was the best part. she does not like the beard.
saturday:
THE PARADE. i usually get up early to save a spot down on the highway. got up at 5:30 and got a necessary shower. got to my location and although people camped on the east side of the highway, the middle part is often open, which was the case. so i laid down my two blankets and started playing a video game. after which i though was an eternity, i checked my watch. 15 minutes!! this is going to be a long morning. which it wasn't. about 6:45 my brother-in-law showed up. and after a breakfast burrito and some gatorade, i was ready for the day. i love watching people show up for events. i do the same thing at football, basketball games. well, everyone got there and the parade started at 9:15am, just the usual crowd of bands and politicians. on the plus side, they increased parade registration and cut the number of floats in half. thank goodness. the best part of the parade, the candy. my niece leah made off like a bandit. like tons of candy and stuff. and she was good at running for it. brynne could have cared less. if the candy was thrown at her and it landed in her lap, she would pick it up. she chased candy the first few minutes, after she had a good two hands full, she picked a spot on the road and proceeded to fill up on candy. she didn't want any more after that. she's so cool.
THE COOKOUT. well, brynne wasn't feeling too good for some reason, so we, meaning the kids went back to my sisters house. soon after everyone came back. then the floodgates opened. the rain started pouring, and it didn't stop. never seen it rain so much on a fair day. it stopped for 5 minutes and then kept going, for the next few hours. we still had our burgers and steaks. it was good to be together as family. the kids kept entertained on the wii system. and i did what i could to keep taryn from killing herself. toddlers get into everything. after eating and everyone settled i finally got taryn to sleep. later that night we just kicked back and digested all the food we ate. spent time watching dvd's with my mom, i'm sure she's a fan now of Pushing Daisies and Supernatural.
sunday:
GOING HOME. always the hardest thing to do. after my goodbyes, i usually find most of my dvd's i brought home. give everyone their goodbye hugs then after a quick personal prayer, i head back to Utah. i usually just leave when i get up. that day i slept in till 7:30. had some eggs and hotdogs for breakfast and left. no problems until colorado, caught the end of a massive storm. then closer to monticello, caught my first sight of the mountains and there it was, all covered in snow. alot of snow. this far south, it was amazing and beautiful. the rain eased up and really had no other problems. just another Fair, but with my family, it is always a great memory.
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