| Clifford Stoll | |
|---|---|
| Alma mater | Dalhousie University |
Clifford Stoll (or Cliff Stoll) is a U.S. astronomer and author. He is best known for his pursuit of hacker Markus Hess in 1986 and the subsequent 1989 book detailing his investigation. Stoll has authored a total of three books as well as technology articles in the non-specialist press (e.g., in Scientific American on the Curta mechanical calculator and the slide rule).
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Cliff Stoll received his Ph.D. from University of Arizona in 1980.
During the 1960s and '70s, Stoll was assistant chief engineer[1] at WBFO, a public radio station in Buffalo, New York, where he was born and raised.
In 1986 Stoll investigated hacker Markus Hess while employed as a systems administrator at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. After identifying the intrusion he set up a honeypot for Hess, eventually tracking him down and passing details to the authorities. It is recognised as one of the first examples of digital forensics, at the time gaining co-operation from law enforcement was a challenge due to the relatively new nature of the crime.[2] He described the events of his investigation in The Cuckoo's Egg: Tracking a Spy Through the Maze of Computer Espionage and the paper "Stalking the Wily Hacker".[3] Stoll's book was later chronicled in an episode of WGBH's NOVA titled "The KGB, the Computer, and Me" which aired on PBS stations in 1990.
In his 1995 book Silicon Snake Oil,[4] and an accompanying article in Newsweek[5] Stoll called the prospect of e-commerce "baloney," and raised questions about the influence of the Internet on future society and whether it would be beneficial. Along the way, he made various predictions, e.g. about e-commerce (calling it nonviable due to a lack of personal contact and secure online funds transfers) and the future of printed news publications ("no online database will replace your daily newspaper"). When the article resurfaced on BoingBoing in 2010, Stoll left a self-deprecating comment: "Of my many mistakes, flubs, and howlers, few have been as public as my 1995 howler....Now, whenever I think I know what's happening, I temper my thoughts: Might be wrong, Cliff..." [6]
Stoll has sold blown glass Klein bottles on the Web, and his web site is currently accepting orders.[7][8] As of 2000[update], he is "mostly" a stay-at-home dad.[7] He taught eighth graders about physics at Tehiyah Day School, in El Cerrito, California,[9] and later taught physics to home-schooled teenagers.[10] Stoll was a regular contributor to MSNBC's The Site. Stoll is an FCC licensed amateur radio operator, callsign K7TA.[11]