Virgil Griffith
Encyclopedia
Virgil Griffith also known as Romanpoet, is an American
hacker
, known for his involvement in a 2003 lawsuit with Blackboard Inc.
and his creation of WikiScanner
. He has published papers on artificial life
and is currently a graduate student at the California Institute of Technology
. According to the New York Times
, he is the Internet Man of Mystery.
in 1983 and graduated from the Alabama School of Math and Science in 2002, and then attended the University of Alabama
, studying cognitive science
in New College
. He was a member of the Mallet Assembly
. He transferred to Indiana University
in 2004, but returned to graduate cum laude from Alabama in August 2007. Griffith is now a graduate student studying computation and neural systems. He is affiliated with the Santa Fe Institute
as a visiting researcher.
, and HOPE
. It was at Interz0ne 1 in 2002 that he met Billy Hoffman
, a Georgia Tech student, who had discovered a security flaw in the campus magnetic ID card system called "BuzzCard". He and Hoffman proceeded over the next year to learn more about the flaw and attempted to give a talk at Interz0ne2 in April 2003. However, a few hours before the presentation, he and Hoffman were served with a restraining order. Two days later, it was followed by a lawsuit
from Blackboard Inc.
alleging that they had stolen trade secrets as well as violated both the DMCA and the Economic Espionage Act
. The lawsuit was later settled.
," that tracks Wikipedia article edits from unregistered accounts back to their originating IP addresses and identifies the corporations or organizations to which they belong.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
hacker
Hacker (computer security)
In computer security and everyday language, a hacker is someone who breaks into computers and computer networks. Hackers may be motivated by a multitude of reasons, including profit, protest, or because of the challenge...
, known for his involvement in a 2003 lawsuit with Blackboard Inc.
Blackboard Inc.
Blackboard Inc. is an enterprise software company with its corporate headquarters in Washington, D.C. and is primarily known as a developer of education software, in particular learning management systems. Blackboard was founded by CEO Michael Chasen and chairman Matthew Pittinsky in 1997 and...
and his creation of WikiScanner
WikiScanner
WikiScanner was a tool which consisted of a publicly searchable database that linked millions of anonymous edits on the free online encyclopedia Wikipedia to the organizations where those edits apparently originated, by cross-referencing the edits with data on the owners of the associated block of...
. He has published papers on artificial life
Artificial life
Artificial life is a field of study and an associated art form which examine systems related to life, its processes, and its evolution through simulations using computer models, robotics, and biochemistry. The discipline was named by Christopher Langton, an American computer scientist, in 1986...
and is currently a graduate student at the California Institute of Technology
California Institute of Technology
The California Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Pasadena, California, United States. Caltech has six academic divisions with strong emphases on science and engineering...
. According to the New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, he is the Internet Man of Mystery.
Early life and education
Griffith was born in AlabamaAlabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
in 1983 and graduated from the Alabama School of Math and Science in 2002, and then attended the University of Alabama
University of Alabama
The University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States....
, studying cognitive science
Cognitive science
Cognitive science is the interdisciplinary scientific study of mind and its processes. It examines what cognition is, what it does and how it works. It includes research on how information is processed , represented, and transformed in behaviour, nervous system or machine...
in New College
New College, University of Alabama
New College is an interdisciplinary, undergraduate-focused academic unit within the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Alabama, located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Enrollment is limited to 200 undergraduate students. The current director is Jim Hall....
. He was a member of the Mallet Assembly
Mallet Assembly
The Mallet Assembly is an intellectual living program at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Mallet was established in 1961 by John Blackburn and is the oldest honors program still in existence at the University of Alabama....
. He transferred to Indiana University
Indiana University
Indiana University is a multi-campus public university system in the state of Indiana, United States. Indiana University has a combined student body of more than 100,000 students, including approximately 42,000 students enrolled at the Indiana University Bloomington campus and approximately 37,000...
in 2004, but returned to graduate cum laude from Alabama in August 2007. Griffith is now a graduate student studying computation and neural systems. He is affiliated with the Santa Fe Institute
Santa Fe Institute
The Santa Fe Institute is an independent, nonprofit theoretical research institute located in Santa Fe and dedicated to the multidisciplinary study of the fundamental principles of complex adaptive systems, including physical, computational, biological, and social systems.The Institute houses a...
as a visiting researcher.
Hacking
Griffith has given talks at the hacker conferences Interz0ne, PhreakNICPhreakNIC
PhreakNIC is an annual hacker and technology convention held in Nashville, Tennessee. It is organized by the Nashville 2600 Organization and draws upon resources from SouthEastern 2600 . The Nashville Linux User Group was closely tied with PhreakNIC for the first 10 years, but is no longer an...
, and HOPE
H.O.P.E.
HOPE is a conference series sponsored by the hacker magazine 2600: The Hacker Quarterly. Held biennially in the summer, there have been eight conferences to date with the next scheduled for 13 - 15 July 2012.- HOPE: Hackers On...
. It was at Interz0ne 1 in 2002 that he met Billy Hoffman
Billy Hoffman
Billy Hoffman, also known as Acidus, is an American hacker, born in Atlanta, Georgia on October 15, 1980.-Biography:His father is a sales consultant and his mother is a historian and a former high school social studies teacher. Hoffman created StripeSnoop, an application which analyzes data on...
, a Georgia Tech student, who had discovered a security flaw in the campus magnetic ID card system called "BuzzCard". He and Hoffman proceeded over the next year to learn more about the flaw and attempted to give a talk at Interz0ne2 in April 2003. However, a few hours before the presentation, he and Hoffman were served with a restraining order. Two days later, it was followed by a lawsuit
Lawsuit
A lawsuit or "suit in law" is a civil action brought in a court of law in which a plaintiff, a party who claims to have incurred loss as a result of a defendant's actions, demands a legal or equitable remedy. The defendant is required to respond to the plaintiff's complaint...
from Blackboard Inc.
Blackboard Inc.
Blackboard Inc. is an enterprise software company with its corporate headquarters in Washington, D.C. and is primarily known as a developer of education software, in particular learning management systems. Blackboard was founded by CEO Michael Chasen and chairman Matthew Pittinsky in 1997 and...
alleging that they had stolen trade secrets as well as violated both the DMCA and the Economic Espionage Act
Economic Espionage Act of 1996
The Economic Espionage Act of 1996 was a 6 title Act of Congress dealing with a wide range of issues, including not only industrial espionage , but the insanity defense, the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, requirements for presentence investigation reports, and the United...
. The lawsuit was later settled.
WikiScanner
On August 14, 2007, Griffith released a new software utility, "WikiScannerWikiScanner
WikiScanner was a tool which consisted of a publicly searchable database that linked millions of anonymous edits on the free online encyclopedia Wikipedia to the organizations where those edits apparently originated, by cross-referencing the edits with data on the owners of the associated block of...
," that tracks Wikipedia article edits from unregistered accounts back to their originating IP addresses and identifies the corporations or organizations to which they belong.
Writing
- Virgil Griffith, Markus Jakobsson, 2005. "Messin' with Texas: Deriving Mother's Maiden Names Using Public Records", ISBN 978-3-540-26223-7.
- Virgil Griffith, Larry Yaeger, 2005, MIT Press. "Ideal Free Distribution in Agents with Evolved Neural Architectures. A-Life 10 Conference".
- Griffith is listed as one of the contributors (as "Virgil G") in The Mammoth Book of Secret Codes and Cryptograms, 2006, ISBN 0-7867-1726-2.
- Two articles in Phishing and Counter-Measures: Understanding the Increasing Problem of Electronic Identity Theft, ISBN 0-471-78245-9.
External links
- Binary Revolution webcast, May 17, 2005
- Salon, April 15, 2003
- Santa Fe Institute talk
- Slashdot interview, April 14, 2003
- Polyworld: Using Evolution to Design Artificial Intelligence, November 8, 2007