Cluttermagnet Posted June 28, 2007 Share Posted June 28, 2007 A security wiz, so sez Agnitum. There's a little online test you can take on their site. Er, I got 26 out of 30. Bet you guys can do better. I wonder which ones I blew? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LilBambi Posted June 28, 2007 Share Posted June 28, 2007 At first it looked like I wouldn't be taking the quiz -- cuz they want my email and a friends' email at the link you gave for information on the quiz: http://www.agnitum.com/r/stquiz/share/But I went to the main http://www.agnitum.com site and there is a link there that passes you off to the actual quiz here from the orginal link:http://www.agnitum.com/bitrix/rk.php?id=74...in%2Fstquiz%2F+Here's the link they provide on the link they give you to put on your web page if you want to put it there:http://www.agnitum.com/r/stquiz/other/I am apparently a Warlock with 22 of 30 answers correct: Your final score is 22 out of 30.You’re headed in the right direction, but your knowledge needs straightening out a bit.I would think more of their test if they were to provided the answers at the end so you could 'straighten out your knowledge a bit' as they say. But they do not.And I would think that it was a more serious test if they didn't attempt to make Hackers out to be bad guys with questions like this on the first page:The term “hacker†refers to people who: Attempt to get unauthorized access to the target computer or restricted data and view, compromise or exploit its contents. Send spam and phishing and receive commission payments from advertisers. Write spyware that delivers advertising banners and unwanted pop-ups. Create an illegal marketplace for stolen credit cards.This was a total waste of time because it was just a stupid survey, IMHO.I copied and pasted almost all the questions they asked and I answered them correctly from what I could tell. I am not sure what questions were the trick questions that I got wrong....because they don't tell you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cluttermagnet Posted June 29, 2007 Author Share Posted June 29, 2007 (edited) That's somewhat hilarious, Fran-Because I know to a certainly that you actually know a lot more about PC security issues than I do. You do some of this stuff for a living, and you do some things I haven't personally attempted. So the site is, unfortunately, fluff to some extent. And it definitely irks me that they don't feed back where you got it right and wrong. Maybe they'll get a little user response and then be led to improve the test.Hackers? Maybe I have good test instincts. I just knew to take it that they were using 'hackers' as a pejorative. I understand the fuller meaning of the term. Many hackers are, of course, 'white hats'. Edited June 29, 2007 by Cluttermagnet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewmur Posted June 29, 2007 Share Posted June 29, 2007 That's somewhat hilarious, Fran-Because I know to a certainly that you actually know a lot more about PC security issues than I do. You do some of this stuff for a living, and you do some things I haven't personally attempted. So the site is, unfortunately, fluff to some extent. And it definitely irks me that they don't feed back where you got it right and wrong. Maybe they'll get a little user response and then be led to improve the test.Hackers? Maybe I have good test instincts. I just knew to take it that they were using 'hackers' as a pejorative. I understand the fuller meaning of the term. Many hackers are, of course, 'white hats'. I think it is a scam. The 22 of 30 appears to be the standard score which is meant to entice everyone into buying their service to make oneself a "real expert." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LilBambi Posted June 29, 2007 Share Posted June 29, 2007 Heard that Clutter! I wish they would have thought a bit about this. They were not trying to truly help anyone -- this was a marketing campaign for them. Or worse yet, maybe you are right lewmur about it being an outright scam!Clutter, yes, so glad you get the fuller meaning of the term hacker and that many are of course, 'white hats' -- now if those who are in the security field will get it and not fall into the government's desire to vilify all hackers -- which will have a very (I hope UNINTENDED) consequence of stifling innovation in the long run or worse yet, create more 'black hat' hackers because as you know the old adage: if you have already made up your mind that I am a criminal and there is nothing I can do to change that, I might as well be. Sigh........ Same bad karma things that are happening in the DRM and criminalizing of citizens regarding music and movies, etc. by the entertainment cartels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LilBambi Posted June 29, 2007 Share Posted June 29, 2007 It's very odd to me ... what they are trying to do to hackers.If this were about doctors, you would have heard a big stink about it. Doctors making calls trying to get the government and/or mass media to change their thinking about how they describe 'evil doctors,' 'bad doctors,' etc., differently from just 'doctor' so and so, or the 'good' doctor as it were.I am not sure there has ever been a greater attempt at vilifying a normally good type of person, and equating them ALL with the bad elements -- except during things like the haulocaust -- which so far hasn't been a close thing comparison wise yet -- but I wonder where this is all going.This is very bad for society as a whole. And I fear for the youth who may not realize what has been done to vilify all hackers, good and bad, to be criminals somehow in the mass media, by the government agencies, etc.Sad...sorry I digress... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
striker Posted June 30, 2007 Share Posted June 30, 2007 In that case I sure hope for the guys at Agnitum they know what they have put up there, hacker vs. cracker. When they - the hackers that is - read that, well I dunno ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LilBambi Posted June 30, 2007 Share Posted June 30, 2007 Yes. this is a very sad state of things ... innovation should be good. All who even created the Internet and develop hardware, software, OSes basically had their start in innovations by hacking known hardware, or software/OS code to learn about it....even in school!And as you say, Security Experts didn't get there by schooling alone ... they make use of hacker tools, create hacker tools, etc. to help combat the bad guys.It's no wonder other countries are doing better at innovation these days....talk about idiots in our government ... cutting off their nose to spite their face, as it were.Sigh... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cluttermagnet Posted July 2, 2007 Author Share Posted July 2, 2007 Ahhh-I get it now. The more you know, the lower your score. Heh!Two threads going here, actually (that's OK!) Commercial interests stomping on the citizenry (using government as proxy)? We've seen that before. Right around the late 19th century was another 'bubble'. The 'robber barons' cleaned up at everyones' expense, yet ironically seeded the rise of the middle class. The pendulum swings back in their favor, roughly another century later. So many bad decisions lately- in copyright (DRM) and patents, banking, tax, and bankruptcy law, investment excesses, energy and the environment, transportation, manufacturing, agriculture and nutrition, international affairs (wars and rumors of wars). Watch the big picture, see the end of the middle class threatened. Yeah, stomp 'em all back into poverty, that's the ticket... What outwardly appears to be a colossally bad series of bad decisions actually makes perfect sense, under that world view. Pesky middle class must be reined in. Golden rule, you know: "he who has the gold makes the rules".Their calculation of who is a bad guy- anyone who threatens their obscenely bloated profits. Or, for worn out enterprises, anyone who threatens to put them out of business by actually innovating. Heh! Country club dues have gotten real expensive, you know. Must be inflation. Quick, more profits! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LilBambi Posted July 2, 2007 Share Posted July 2, 2007 On the main topic: LOL! That's a funny analogy ... the more you know the worse your score LOL! I don't know but my Jim says he hates those stupid types of tests that are not testing your logic or knowledge, but try to trip you up with verbiage that goes in circles and/or misleads. Multiple choice questions can be difficult for you to write, especially if you want students to go beyond recall of information, but the exams are easier to grade than essay or short-answer exams. On the other hand, multiple choice exams provide less opportunity than essay or short-answer exams for you to determine how well the students can think about the course content or use the language of the discipline in responding to questions. http://depts.washington.edu/cidrweb/TAHand...ionMethods.htmlOn the secondary topic: And let's not forget outsourcing ... even in these dangerous times, big corporations think it is not only OK, but necessary to outsource Citizen's data to other countries! EVEN the IRS!! In fact, the IRS has been CUTTING BACK on outsourcing, apparently!?!http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/conte...6112901515.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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