Oh really now? Fuck Microsoft

[Gromgor]

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm...msftlaw29.html

[Riek]

Why are we booing and hissing Microsoft?

This type of software is everywhere. Look up 'FTK'. Also, in other Operating Systems, there is actually a command to perform this exact function.

I find it more amusing that they do not have a write blocker included (which they don't if accessing the HDD the way they are) which potentially means the evidence is inadmissible in court.

[Rosuav]

Originally posted by Haigen
Why are we booing and hissing Microsoft?

Because it's taken them this long to catch up with the rest of the world?

As you say, this sort of thing has been around for a long time. Part of the paradox of the internet and computing is that you have near-complete anonymity, and yet there's no such thing as anonymity. If I walk into a bricks-and-mortar shop and buy something (assuming it's not alcohol where you show photo ID/proof of age), they don't have much of a record of who I am, but they do have a fairly good idea what I look like, so if I walk out without paying, they can chase me down visually. When I buy something online, they have no idea who I am, and yet there's a whole lot that they DO know - IP address (which, coupled with timestamp, can be used by the ISP to identify an account), browser details, etcetera. You can falsify and/or remove some of it, but it leaves you looking as though you have something to hide; it's like walking into a service station with a stocking mask on - even if you're just paying for your fuel, people are going to get suspicious.

It's even more so on your own computer. The amount that your computer records is impressive; and that's even just looking at the high-level information - if you look at the actual platters of a hard disk, you can (sometimes) retrieve information that was there before the disk was formatted. It's relatively straightforward to wipe a HD; but to try to keep yourself clean while you actively use the computer is impossible.

[Rijiny]

Sadly the internet is a dangerous place for people who aren't responsible enough to be sensible and use common sense... which is a lot of people. There's a stranger with candy in just about every chat room, that's why I only talk to people I play with in MUDs and such.