| Clifford Stoll |
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| Alma mater | Dalhousie University |
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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, The Cuckoo's Egg, which details 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).
Early life
Cliff Stoll received his Ph.D. from University of Arizona in 1980.
Career
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 recognized 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.
One of Stoll's Klein bottles
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]
Additionally, Stoll sells blown glass Klein bottles through his company Acme Klein Bottles.[7] He was an eighth grade physics teacher at Tehiyah Day School, in El Cerrito, California,[8] and later taught physics to home-schooled teenagers.[9] Stoll was a regular contributor to MSNBC's The Site. Stoll is an FCC licensed amateur radio operator with the call sign K7TA.[10]
Bibliography
- Clifford Stoll (1989). The Cuckoo's Egg. New York: Doubleday. ISBN 0-370-31433-6.
- Clifford Stoll (1995). Silicon Snake Oil - Second thoughts on the information highway. ISBN 0-330-34442-0.
- High-Tech Heretic: Reflections of a Computer Contrarian
Notes and references
- High-Tech Heretic: Reflections of a Computer Contrarian, Clifford Stoll, 2000, ISBN 0-385-48976-5.
External links
- Stoll's page at Leigh Speakers Bureau
- Clifford Stoll at TED
- Appearances on C-SPAN
- Clifford Stoll at the Internet Movie Database
- Works by or about Clifford Stoll in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
- Stalking the Wily Hacker copy at textfiles.com, May 1988
- Picture of Stoll from an interview with by Pro-Linux Magazine, February 9, 2005 (German)
- 2004 audio interview with Clifford Stoll by Karen Saupe (RealAudio)
- Cliff Stoll and Jonathan Zittrain on When Countries Collide Online: Internet Spies, Cyberwar, and Government Skullduggery, MediaBerkman, February 8, 2010 (1:21 h), Video (OGG video), Podcast (MP3, OGG audio)
- Talk by Cliff Stoll April 4, 1996
| Persondata |
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| Name | Stoll, Clifford |
| Alternative names | |
| Short description | Americana stronomer |
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