Two GCC stories

Posted Jul 2, 2010 12:08 UTC (Fri) by sorpigal (subscriber, #36106)
In reply to: Two GCC stories by Kissaki
Parent article: Two GCC stories

The important thing, I think, is that when someone goes through the trouble of building multiple reputations he doesn't trash them casually. If I have a troll identity and a respectable identity you can probably trust the respectable identity to remain respectable even if I were committing major crimes with another identity.

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Two GCC stories

Posted Jul 4, 2010 3:18 UTC (Sun) by Kissaki (guest, #61848) [Link]

It sounds to me like the possibility exists that the reputation would not be trashed casually.

That reputation could be used as a tool to accomplish something worth more than the time spent to develop it. This is social engineering. Access to the development of GCC could (paranoia talking) be a stepping stone to compromising a wide variety of software.

In addition, you are assuming that the resulting identity would be 'trashed'. A clever intruder would not expose him (or her) self as a wrongdoer (where is the gain in that), but would act in secret. You might never discover their actions.

Online identity and reputation is worth something; no question. But you place too high a value on it in my opinion.