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Aaronsw indicted for hacking MIT network to download millions of JSTOR docs

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Re: Aaronsw indicted for hacking MIT network to download millions of JSTOR docs

#221

Post by kragen »

mark242 wrote: post #155
kaerast wrote: post #144

One hopes he is smart enough to have a solid legal argument for what he has done. If he loses the legal battle then it's going to set a bad precedent for all these academic document stores to continue keeping hold of this information. On the other hand, if he were to win then it may make it harder for groups like JSTOR to continue restricting access to their data.

A solid legal argument for switching your MAC address, hiding a laptop in a closet, and deliberately concealing your face to try to avoid recognition? He isn't going to win that defense.

Hypothetically: wiring closets are normal places for computers engaged in always-on network services. Putting a box over a laptop can keep it from getting stolen. Your bike helmet can end up in front of your face for a while while you're taking it off or putting it on. Switching your MAC address is reasonable if there's a MAC address conflict, or if you've gone and apologized to the network infrastructure guys for causing problems and they accepted your apology but didn't have the password for the DHCP server handy.

Try to remember you're seeing the picture painted entirely by the prosecution, without even the evidence that the grand jury saw to support it.

Re: Aaronsw indicted for hacking MIT network to download millions of JSTOR docs

#222

Post by kragen »

xer0x wrote: post #147

I admire Aaron's persistence. Sadly it was quite rude of him to repeatedly crash JSTOR's servers. If only he'd throttled his script back a bit. Liberating those documents from JSTOR would have been quite a gift to society.

If the indictment is accurate, he did throttle back his script a bit, and continued to run it for several months after the last JSTOR server crash or blockage.

Re: Aaronsw indicted for hacking MIT network to download millions of JSTOR docs

#223

Post by snikolic »

xefer wrote: post #169
snikolic wrote: post #113

Ignoring legality, Aaron's actions, case specifics, etc., I have to admit: I really wish that the data in question was free and publicly available.

Anybody with a library card to a major public library can get this stuff for free over the web.

There's an enormous difference between controlled access to individual globules of data, and free access to the entirety of a dataset.

Re: Aaronsw indicted for hacking MIT network to download millions of JSTOR docs

#224

Post by kragen »

tptacek wrote: post #68
asciilifeform wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, let him become desaparecido in obscurity. Nacht und Nebel. What a "favor." Do you really think that he will be invited to post incriminating comments here from his jail cell?

Is he in jail? For this? I'd be shocked. I think even Mark Abene made bail, and he reprogrammed telco switches.

No, he is not in jail. I chatted with him on AIM earlier today.

Re: Aaronsw indicted for hacking MIT network to download millions of JSTOR docs

#225

Post by tghw »

sp332 wrote: post #5

How did Aaron get access to the for-pay articles (page 9)? Also: nice going, Aaron! Drag research access into the 21st century, kicking and screaming! Does anyone think it's odd that an Acer laptop could write these files to disk faster than JSTOR could serve them?

Does anyone think it's odd that an Acer laptop could write these files to disk faster than JSTOR could serve them?

Not at all. Writing to the hard drive is going to take much less time than downloading the articles from a remote server.

Re: Aaronsw indicted for hacking MIT network to download millions of JSTOR docs

#226

Post by tghw »

ianb wrote: post #217
mbreese wrote: post #110

JSTOR's statement http://about.jstor.org/news-events/news/jstor-statement-misu... JSTOR Statement: Misuse Incident and Criminal Case The United States Department of Justice announced today the criminal indictment of an individual, Aaron Swartz, on charges related to computer fraud and abuse stemming from his misuse of the JSTOR database. We have been subpoenaed by the United States Attorney’s Office in this case and…

This seems contrary to Demand Progress's statement: “It’s even more strange because the alleged victim has settled any claims against Aaron, explained they’ve suffered no loss or damage, and asked the government not to prosecute,” Segal added.

Yeah, I haven't seen anything that backs up Demand Progress's position.

Re: Aaronsw indicted for hacking MIT network to download millions of JSTOR docs

#227

Post by jillsy »

stephth wrote: post #157
mbreese wrote: post #110

JSTOR's statement http://about.jstor.org/news-events/news/jstor-statement-misu... JSTOR Statement: Misuse Incident and Criminal Case The United States Department of Justice announced today the criminal indictment of an individual, Aaron Swartz, on charges related to computer fraud and abuse stemming from his misuse of the JSTOR database. We have been subpoenaed by the United States Attorney’s Office in this case and…

This sounds very hypocritical. If their "Mission and Work" is to support scholarly work and academic usage, and encourage usage of large sets of data, why are they suing Aaron's ass instead of working with him to further understand what were his needs that their system was lacking and how they could reduce that gap? Why else would Aaron hack their system if not for research? Sounds like instead of spending money in i…

Here's what's supposed to happen: A student on campus wants to do a research project analyzing a large number of journal articles, or even just the metadata around a large number of journal articles. They approach their librarian, the librarian approaches the journal vendor (JSTOR or someone else), and everyone works together to find a way to get the student their data. Maybe the vendor hands over a special dataset. Maybe they give them back-end access to their database. Maybe they allow the student to run a Python script against their website, but only in the middle of the night so as not to slow down service for other users.

Here's what sometimes happens instead: The student writes and runs a clever script, the vendor notices that their servers have slowed due to automated script activity on their webpages, shuts down access from that IP address, and lets the school know. University IT staff and librarians drop what they're doing and try to track down the party responsible. Once they've been identified, the nice librarian has to have a talk with the student about what's permitted under the university's license agreement with the publisher, and together they go to the data vendor to ask forgiveness and permission. They usually get it.

Here's what Aaron did: He walked onto the MIT campus, set up a script not to analyze metadata but to actually download large numbers of documents, and when his IP was blocked, he used traditional hacking as well as Johnny Long-style "no-tech hacking" to get around it. http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2160824376898701015

Publishers, rightly or wrongly, assume that someone systematically downloading entire journal runs is intending to set up a shadow database to give away their content for free. The feds seem to agree, in this case.

The thing that gets me is that JSTOR was more than reasonable in this case. They didn't immediately shut down the whole campus (like some overly-aggressive publishers do), but started with the IP addresses involved. When it didn't stop, they had to cut off access completely. Aaron, who isn't even a student at MIT, managed to kick the whole campus off JSTOR for weeks, and as soon as they restored access, he went at it again. If I were a librarian at MIT, I'd want the book thrown at him.

Re: Aaronsw indicted for hacking MIT network to download millions of JSTOR docs

#228

Post by tibbon »

If all academic papers were released under a Creative Commons license, would this even be an issue?

Aside from the allegations about breaking into various physical hardware infrastructure at MIT, wouldn't that be like being charged with downloading too many Jonathan Coulton albums?

Re: Aaronsw indicted for hacking MIT network to download millions of JSTOR docs

#229

Post by tghw »

rryan wrote: post #74
runningdogx wrote: post #34

This is the most technically competent charging document I've ever read. I guess there must have been some hackers on the grand jury. Paragraph 35 & 36: which "protected computer" on MIT's network did he access? Certainly they're not trying to claim his laptop was a protected computer? Are they talking about the DHCP server or whatever registration frontend MIT has for the DHCP assignments? I have trouble with the co…

I think 18USC1030 is pretty broad in its definition of a "computer". Back in the MBTA hacking case, MBTA claimed a magnetized piece of paper was a computer under this clause, and the first judge that looked at it bought that (sanity prevailed and that decision was later over-ruled). I wouldn't be surprised if they are considering the MIT network or at least the routers that were configured to prevent his access the p…

Yeah, the switch that he hard-wired into would certainly count as a "computer".

Re: Aaronsw indicted for hacking MIT network to download millions of JSTOR docs

#230

Post by cube13 »

neilk wrote: post #167
dgreensp wrote: post #136

What Aaron did sounds seriously sketchy (sneaking into MIT wiring closets, trying to download the entire database, etc.), a fact that Demand Progress and several commenters here seem to be ignoring. Defending his actions would require a very strong, multi-pronged version of the argument "if it's physically / technologically possible, it must be ok." Can MIT legally limit guest access to its network? Can JSTOR limit a…

Right, because the standard penalty for trespass onto campus property is a federal indictment. Good thing no MIT student has ever snuck into a restricted area before.

Only he's a fellow at Harvard, not an MIT student or faculty. So no, they couldn't handle this internally.

Possibly with the local police, but that may have been what caused it to escalate.

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