Famous hacker, Kevin Mitnick passes away at 59

BenLloydPearson@programming.dev to Programming@programming.dev – 444 points –
Kevin Mitnick Obituary - Las Vegas, NV
dignitymemorial.com
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Wow he wasn't that old, damn, it was always fun when he showed up at The Screensavers.

I never understood the bashing for being a "sellout", he was a well known public figure in tech industry, I bet it was hard to find a decent job.

It's terribly sad when such great minds are taken relatively early from such horrible diseases.

He seems like someone who always made the best of any situation. After a stint in prison, I'm sure he just wanted to keep doing his best, which led him towards things that weren't as controversial. Either way, we all have plenty to learn from his works.

My first introduction to Kevin Mitnick was an episode of The Screen Savers where he was first allowed to have internet back and they made a whole big to-do about what he was going to visit first… memories!

Holy crap. I remember the "Free Mitnick!" campaign.

Edit: Clearly @Hellsadvocate thinks Mitnick deserves what he got.

He had the book thrown at him in profound knee-jerk ignorance.
I remember reading the Rolling Stone article when it was published.
Years later in the late 90s, I remember listening to his radio talk show, feeling glad that he landed in a good place, that his ordeal didn't break him.

Seems like there was an article about it in every edition of 2600 all through the late 90s.

Saw him in person at Defcon years ago. He was very personable and was happy to talk to anyone. RIP

Huh, maybe it was just the event or his mood. I met him at an security event and he was an absolute asshole to everyone. Basically any questions, he gave short terse answers to and clearly it didn't want to say hi to anyone. Glad others had better experiences than mine.

We all have bad days. Unfortunately his coincided with the only time you saw him. I don't think that makes him an asshole. I think it makes him human.

You ever call in sick because you're not feeling it? Public figures can't do that because people will call them an asshole.

Yes. Social engineers are surprisingly good at being social. It's like they could do it for work instead of technical hacking.

And with his first child on the way.

Fucking universe...

Free Kevin.

I remember being at Defcon the year all the FREE KEVIN stickers were everywhere ...

Wow, I still have an old computer with a “Free Kevin” sticker on it. RIP you absolute legend

I learnt of Kevin Mitnick from HN many years ago. I was pleasantly surprised to see him as the face of a company's in-house security trainings. May he be at peace.

The King of Social Engineering! No! Too young and I'm only a few years younger. RIP

FREE KEVIN '99!

Reminds me of being an edgy teenager and reading 2600 Magazine (that I got from the local Barnes & Noble lol). RIP