Here’s the latest on a story we had over a month ago.
‘UFO Hacker’ Tells What He Found
The search for proof of the existence of UFOs landed Gary McKinnon in a world of trouble.
After allegedly hacking into NASA websites […] the 40-year-old Briton faces extradition to the United States from his North London home. If convicted, McKinnon could receive a 70-year prison term and up to $2 million in fines.
McKinnon: A NASA photographic expert said that there was a Building 8 at Johnson Space Center where they regularly airbrushed out images of UFOs from the high-resolution satellite imaging. I logged on to NASA and was able to access this department. They had huge, high-resolution images stored in their picture files. They had filtered and unfiltered, or processed and unprocessed, files.
My dialup 56K connection was very slow trying to download one of these picture files. As this was happening, I had remote control of their desktop, and by adjusting it to 4-bit color and low screen resolution, I was able to briefly see one of these pictures. It was a silvery, cigar-shaped object with geodesic spheres on either side. There were no visible seams or riveting. There was no reference to the size of the object and the picture was taken presumably by a satellite looking down on it. The object didn’t look manmade or anything like what we have created. Because I was using a Java application, I could only get a screenshot of the picture — it did not go into my temporary internet files. At my crowning moment, someone at NASA discovered what I was doing and I was disconnected.
“a silvery, cigar-shaped object with geodesic spheres on either side”
Hey, that’s the Satellite Of Love!
J/P=?
The story is BS. The technical aspects of this are so inaccurate that his story is clearly hogwash.
So, no actual proof then … typical.
“cigar-shaped object with geodesic spheres on either side”…. Thats not a UFO at all, thats someone seeing how close they can get the camera to zoom.
“cigar-shaped object with geodesic spheres on either side” er… This sounds more like a satelite at a lower orbit then a UFO. Nice Try Though.
BTW, would it have been that hard for him to hit “Print Screen”?
Blah blah blah blah UFO coverup blah blah blah Secret installation blah blah blah 56k modem blah blah blah remote control desktop blah blah blah.
So to summarize, he hacked into a secret NASA installation, via a 56k modem, took over a computer via remote desktop and started browsing photos. What number did he dial again? What remote control software was installed on this secret computer?
Another great example of completely useless and idiotic ‘news’ making it onto this blog.
It’s been a slow news day.
Interesting.
Almost a thousand words used to say nothing significant, must have been slow newsday for Wired indeed.
A cigar shaped object with geodesic spheres on either side …
Sounds like that UFO was “well hung”.
I think everyone here is being WAY too skeptical. The secrets of the universe are being revealed to us, yet we’re rejecting them. He that believeth will be rewarded with infinite bandwidth, but he who saith “Print Screen” hath uttered blasphemy, and shall be doomed to an eternity of “network connection not found.”
That’s the most recent translation I have.
One would think if the guy went through the trouble of hacking into a NASA web site (because we all know that NASA hides all their top secrets on their HTML servers, along with Hamster Dance site). He would have the brains to use someone else’s WiFi hotspot over his ghetto home 56k dial up network. He deserves to be put away for that. Aliens or no Aliens.
#10,
It was the Lexx.
All the tech, all the cameras and we still have no clear, high resolution, and tightly focused image, either analog or digital, of an alien or an alien artifact. Either they are extremely camera shy or they do not exist. All these phony, grainy and blurred images of plates, dildos and waffle irons simply confirm what every one with a semi-intact brain already knows; the BS level on planet Earth is higher than anywhere else in the galaxy, and if the little green guys are here then they are hidden well away, probably as Gothic cross-dressers with a yen for young blonds.
Well, McKinnon’s latest story doesn’t say much that he hadn’t already talked about. There is no more or less to prove his point.
The interesting part of this whole story will be to see what the Feds do to try to shut him up. Will he be deported from the UK for breaking into NASA computers? If it goes to trial, will NASA be forced to open up sensitive records to prove their case? What other tidbits will McKinnon release if it ends up in a court room?
This story is interesting for the subject of the hacking as much as the hacking itself.
I just wish the guy had had a DSL modem instead of dialup. I wonder what he would have found if he had more speed/time.
I do find it suspect that he was caught at the exact moment that he finally found what he was looking for. That sounds a little too coincidental for belief.
“I wonder what he would have found if he had more speed/time.”
Mark, he would’ve found more excuses about why he couldn’t manage to keep/capture or produce any of this ‘proof’ of his.
Two improbable details:
Why was a dedicated “UFO information hacker” using a 56kb dial-up connection? Fast broadband is cheap in the UK. It’s like a cop using a push scooter for high speed chases.
And what’s this Java application he was using? Ever heard of anyone use a Java FTP client or a Java web browser on a fully featured home PC? Me neither.
He sounds like a rube.
I saw the BBC interview with this guy. He was totally unconvincing.
It reminded me of those sasquatch sightings where they will SWEAR they saw the beast but something always goes wrong… the film gets accidentally exposed, the camera is lost. etc. etc.
Tea Man,
If I recall correctly, he managed to get into computers through Windows 2000 with Remote Assistance. He would search for any computer that the user (admin) had not bothered to put in a password. Apparently, this was quite common and NASA has recified it.
As for a 56k connection, I guess it didn’t draw as much attention as a 2 megabit connection might have garnered. When you are tailing someone’s car, you don’t do it in a Lamborghini.