The Ins and Outs of Personal Bankruptcy Law

Bankruptcy, what is it? First of all,, and in general, it is a legally declared inability of ability of an individual or organization to pay its creditors. What is meant by this term and what are the reasons for it? In this article you may find all the information, you are interested in.  Usually, when people find themselves buried under bills and debt that they can't find a way out from under, they will prefer to consider filing bankruptcy. Bankruptcy has a lot of advantages especially if you found out that there is no way to create a plan, which would be workable and would help you to get caught up. When you understand that the situation is out of control and it ruins your life, you should change the situation. Some reasons for bankruptcy filing are listed below. The first one - you can get a protection. When you have a lot of outstanding debts you run the risk of losing the things that you own. By filing bankruptcy you will protect yourself and your family from losing your assets. When you are in the middle of a financial crisis, the last thing which remains - to worry about loosing your home. When you file the bankruptcy - the process of your protection will start. Filling bankruptcy will give you a new start and it is considered to be one more reason for this process. You will be able to begin rebuilding your credit and putting that bad time in your life behind you. The situation will become better, once you have had those debts that you can't afford to pay discharged. A great varieties of companies that won't help you in financing because of your credit are more willing to overlook the bankruptcy. By filing the bankruptcy you may stop the harassment as for the bill collectors. Many people don't understand how harsh bill collectors can be and how much stress they can put on a person until they themselves find themselves being harassed by them. You may receive a great number of letters that will drive you mad. To learn more information on this topic, please, consult the Internet, as there you'll find all the information you need.| If you are not knowledgeable enough in these matters, there are a lot of Internet resources, which will help you to find all the answers on your questions.} You may just enter in your search system such words as "bankruptcy-data" and you'll see a great variety of resources found. One thing you should do - find the most suitable one.Also, again and again in our life we face problems and difficult situations. As far as you see, the reasons for the bankruptcy may be differentdepending on your social position and life style, but if you visit the links from the Internet you'll be able to avoid a lot of problems concerning Bankruptcy Law. If your finances are in a state where you are considering bankruptcy, make sure you understand Bankruptcy Law so that your process can be pain-free. Get a free bankruptcy evaluation from a qualified lawyer local to you and a wealth of information on how to proceed by visiting our web site at http://www.bankruptcy-data.com We wish you good luck and hope that this article brought you enough information on the topic and now you know what you should do if you meet something of this in your way.
               

               

Personal Bankruptcy Law Is Subject To Change At Any Time

                The present personal bankruptcy law allows a person to apply for personal bankruptcy according to either Chapter Seven or Chapter Thirteen that are bankruptcy codes that are applicable in each and every state in the USA. This however does not mean that the personal bankruptcy law is stagnant and not liable to change because as and when the government finds that certain aspects of the current personal bankruptcy laws need to be changed; it will affect the necessary changes through application of relevant amendments. Current ScenarioEach time a new amendment is passed it results in a change in the existing personal bankruptcy law. How and when changes are rung in really depends on the current scenario as it relates to the environment and business strategy. Of course, only the government has the right to change existing personal bankruptcy laws and not the states and the best person to consult regarding to latest personal bankruptcy laws is any good and experienced personal bankruptcy lawyer.If you are somebody that is snowed under debts that you know you cannot pay off then you must either learn the applicable personal bankruptcy laws and file for bankruptcy on your own or allow an attorney that knows the laws inside out to defend you and to also file for bankruptcy on your behalf.The government is free to pass any new personal bankruptcy laws that it deems fit to describe changed circumstances and these changes will have a profound effect on the chances of those people that are planning to file for personal bankruptcy.Recently, Congress passed a new personal bankruptcy law that has made life for individuals wishing to file for personal bankruptcy a lot harder; though not impossible. This change has been rung in to ensure that only people that are really desperately in need of legal remedies are allowed to file for bankruptcy and not someone that is simply trying to get out of difficult financial circumstances by subverting the law. So, now individuals need to pass what is known as a means test that requires going through a pretty complex process in which you have to document all your expenses and income and only in case your income is below the median income are you then permitted to file for personal bankruptcy.If you are unsure about existing personal bankruptcy laws you can certainly seek to get relevant personal bankruptcy advice from someone that is well acquainted with personal bankruptcy issues and laws. Remember, that personal bankruptcy is not, as many people consider the end of the world. It is in fact a wonderful way to start a fresh life once again after having discharged all your debts through use of personal bankruptcy courts.
               

           

Ny Personal Injury Lawyer Can Surely Help you to Get Compensation

        Nobody wants to get injured and also no-one will like to injure you but accident is something that always comes or happens unknowingly. Well, an injury cannot be always physical but also emotional sometimes. The injury can happen to anybody at any point of time. If it is the case of personal injury caused to you then you are surely eligible for the compensation. You can ask for the compensation amount to one who is responsible for the injury.



In a personal injury, you are surely going to receive monetary benefit from the defaulter. It's all legal procedure that everyone has to follow in the case of injury to get the compensation. The complete process including getting the compensated amount is a legal work which is done by the help of NY personal injury lawyer. The lawyer helps you in getting the amount and in finalizing the legal process. The lawyer will surely take you out from the problems, as he much more experienced.



A good and experienced personal lawyer will first file the case on your behalf in the court. You also need to explain the complete incident that happened with you to the lawyer. The lawyer will take out those points from the accident that will further bring the decision in your favour.After all, every lawyer puts his best effort to make the court decide in your favour and with this determination of the lawyer, and you will definitely get the compensation amount.



Personal injury caused to you can be of any kind .It can be due to an accident, a mishap, some medical misconduct or even due to burglary in your property. Well, there are many cases that are being handled by a wide range of lawyers and it is always a good decision to contact a special lawyer in this case, rather than opting the services of a general lawyer. A lawyer specialized in his own field will surely help you better.



You can find the NY personal injury lawyers very easily, as many law firms keep records of the lawyers on the website. You can search the websites and compare the services offered by the different law firms and then make a wise decision. Prefer that law firm which can give you an experienced and reputed personal injury lawyer. You can also find the lawyers name and their address in the yellow pages. Even you can also find them in the newspapers and magazines including all the information about them.



Basically, the lawyers in United States are called certified personal lawyer. The lawyers have to be registered officially with the certification authority of that particular region for doing the law practice. You must take care of the fact the lawyer you hired must be efficient and skilled enough to handle your case wisely. In depth knowledge of laws will help the lawyer to take out certain strong points that will ease the legal process.



There are a variety of personal injury lawyer who charge differently according to the case. You can also find some of the lawyers on the website and in law firms that charge very reasonable amount from the clients. Before finalizing for the personal injury lawyer, it is advisable that you should meet them personally so that you can know about the capabilities of the lawyer. Anyhow, it's the matter of your compensation and you deserve to get it at any cost.  

Appeal Lawyer

Indian legal system is a compilation of laws drawing its origin from various sources beginning with the customs of the ancient Vedas embodied in the present day Hindu personal laws governing primarily the area of marriage, succession, adoption and guardianship. After the arrival of the Islamic rulers in the country Islamic law gained prominence in the field of personal laws and continues to govern Muslim personal law till date in the country. Subsequently, with the advent of British rule in the country, Common law system became part of the Indian legal system.Questions of law and facts involving the application of provisions of law derived from the various sources of law are adjudicated upon by the three tier hierarchy of courts followed in the country namely by the civil courts, criminal courts, family courts and various district courts which form the first level in this hierarchy followed by the High Courts of various States and finally by the Supreme Court of India which comfortably rests at the top of this hierarchy.High Courts are at the top of hierarchy in each state and enjoy both original jurisdiction as well as appellate jurisdiction over the district courts of the States. However, most work of High Courts includes appeals from lower courts, writ petition under article 226 of the Constitution of India and supervisory jurisdiction under article 227. Thus High Court is the highest court of appeal in matters of civil and criminal cases of the State.In contrast the Supreme Court of India is the highest court of appeal in the country. The appellate jurisdiction of the Supreme Court can be raised by certificate granted by the High Court under article 132(1), 133(1) and article 134 of the constitution in matter of any judgment or final order of the High Court in both criminal and civil cases.Taneja Law Office is a leading law firm in Delhi dealing with civil and criminal matters on the appellate side in both the High Court of Delhi and the Supreme Court of India. We have been providing our expertise in appeal matters to the satisfaction of our clients for over three decades and endeavour to provide academic excellence of high caliber so required in the field.

Accomplished Maryland Personal Injury Law Firm Achieving Justice

Accidents and injuries do not inform you about their arrival. The unpredictability of life is such that you will never know what is going to hit you unless you have actually been hit. Sustaining injuries can be extremely painful and just consider a case where you became a victim of an accident due to someone else's careless behavior. Personal injury attorney are specialized in their fields and hence have a lot of knowledge regarding the subject. Visit attorneys at Otway Russo, LLP for efficient and experienced legal help. They will make sure that you do not lose out on your rights and will prove to be a good friend in your moment of crisis. If you suspect your loved one's death was the result of another's recklessness, carelessness or negligence, you may have a claim for Wrongful Death. A Wrongful Death lawsuit claims that the victim was killed because of another's negligence or other unjust action and the victim's family is entitled to financial compensation as a result. Maryland Wrongful Death lawyer realize that no amount of money can replace a loved one. A Wrongful Death lawsuit can, however, provide the family with the economic stability it needs following their loved one's death. The Maryland Wrongful Death attorneys also obtains substantial return for to cover funeral expenses, mental pain, loss of expected earnings and loss of companionship. Birth injury encompasses injuries that occur during any stage of pregnancies or just after children are born. Claims arising from birth injuries involve complex medical and legal issues. Some birth injuries cannot be prevented, but medical negligence occurs more often than patients would like to believe. When medical negligence causes birth injuries, victims can suffer permanent, and frequently very severe, disabilities. These can include mental retardation and other intellectual and developmental disabilities, seizure disorders, cerebral palsy, or lesser loss of vision, deafness or lesser loss of hearing, and other physical disabilities. Choosing a birth injury attorney maryland may be tough at most times. When choosing a birth injury attorney, make sure you choose a qualified professional that specializes in the field.Personal injury can be a physical, financial or a mental injury caused by another person, object or company. A person can sue and claim for personal injury compensation Accident lawyers specialize in helping those who have incurred an injury due to an oversight of someone else. Without Personal injury attorney, a lot of people will be unable to defend their rights under the law. In fact, personal injury lawyers have actually contributed a great deal to the level of safety awareness that is increasingly being demonstrated by companies, businesses and organizations. Personal injury is not something to be taken lightly and you should seek help if you think your injury may be the result of someone else's negligence.

Personal Injury Law Firm Palm Beach- Why do I need one

Once you are involved in an accident, you need to contact a law firm that can protect you rights. No one expects to get hurt, so when it does sometimes we need to sit down and think what comes next. Contacting a Personal Injury Law Firm would be a wise choice. The Personal Injury Law Firm Palm Beach will help ensure the responsible party for any injury that occurs; will be held accountable for their actions. There are many people who are living without insurance. So if you are injured in an accident you have to make sure your rights are not neglected. Your case should be reviewed by a personal injury law firm.
A tolling number of people are killed or injured on their job each year; about 3 million. When accidents happen at work most employers do not do the right thing. This is why a Personal Injury Law Firm, Palm Beach should be hired. Most of the time you will find when someone is responsible for injuring another person they have to be made to take responsibility for their actions; it's never something they do on their own. Whether an injury is the result of a work accident or a car accident, or something else entirely, it is imperative not to go into a settlement agreement or litigation without an attorney to protect your interest and ensure you are not further harmed by a faulty settlement agreement.
For Personal Injury Law Firm Palm Beach visit http://www.floridainjurylawyer.com/automobile-accidents-west-palm-beach-florida.html 
A Personal Injury Law Firms know how to speak to the responsible party to get their clients what is rightfully due to them after an injury occurs. There may be years of damage the injured party may have to face. The injured may or may not have the same quality of life after an accident. The responsible party should have to pay any medical expenses, lost wages and other economic losses due to the personal harm without litigation. Once you have contacted the personal Injury Law Firm, Palm Beach, they can start working on getting you what you are owed.

Cases That A Personal Injury Law Firm Specializes In

Accidents come unannounced and mishaps are common considering the fact that the streets of America are teeming with people all in a mad rush to reach some place, the roads are filled with speeding vehicles, and the workplaces are increasingly being populated with gadgets and machines to ease the labors of employees. So with the manifold increase in the possibilities of a mishap occurring, there has actually been a spurt in the number of accidents and injuries taking place.Personal injury is referred to any bodily, psychological, or emotional injury. The victim of personal injury is entitled to receive compensation if it can be proved that damages have been caused by the negligence of another person or an organization. And in the recent past, there has been a noticeable rise in the number of such cases. Consequently, there has also been an increase in demand for the services rendered by personal injury law firms. A personal injury law firm has on its board legal experts who are well-versed in the relevant rules and regulations. Here is a run-down of the common cases that a personal injury law firm deals with: * Medical and Dental Accidents: These incidents probably give rise to the greatest number of negligence claims in a year. Such cases include birth injuries, injuries sustained when faulty surgical procedures are followed, prescribing wring medication, failure to make the correct diagnosis, and abuse faced in nursing homes. * Industrial Diseases Cases: Sometimes workers may sustain injuries or be afflicted with diseases like mesothelioma, asbestosis, and chest diseases like chronic obstructive airways disease, silicosis, and emphysema while they have been at work. Injury law firms also take up cases for their clients who are fighting diseases like occupational deafness, repetitive strain injuries, contact dermatitis, and vibration white finger. * Product Defect Cases: Personal injuries arising from product defects are quite common occurrences in the United States. Faulty design, manufacturing or distributing improperly designed products are the common causes behind these incidents and the culprits include quite an array of products like cars, toys, medicines, and baby and childcare products. * Vehicle Accidents: Negligent and rash driving are probably the most prevalent causes behind many road accidents in the United States. Such accidents may involve cars, trucks, trains, ATVs, and also SUVs. Victims of personal injuries resulting from aviation accidents may also press for compensation if the accident has been due to the negligence of another party.When seeking the services of an injury law firm, Elizabeth (NJ) residents rely on reputable firms who have on board legal experts who are knowledgeable and experienced to deal with all kinds of personal injury cases. You should too!

The Denver Personal Injury Attorney and Your Legal Rights Under The Law

Although auto accident cases are most common, a Denver personal injury attorney handles a wide range of cases that can be as minor as being bitten by the neighbor's dog or as serious as wrongful death caused by a defective product made in a major corporation's China factory. Denver personal injury attorneys specialize in the area of law known as torts, which are cases that involve no criminal wrongdoing, but come about as the result of negligence or reckless behavior.It Goes Way BackThe idea that an injured party should receive monetary compensation from those responsible is an ancient concept in law; its purpose was to avoid blood feuds that could result if the injured party's relatives decided they wanted revenge. In Anglo-Saxon England over a thousand years ago, the Denver personal injury attorney's medieval counterpart might represent a plaintiff before a council known as the folc-gemot; if the plaintiff had a valid case, the defendant would be ordered to pay a sum of money, known as were-gyld ("man-price") to his victim.Today, this tradition survives as tort law; such cases are now heard in civil court, sometimes before a judge and jury and sometimes before a judge by his/herself. The best case scenario is when a Colorado personal injury lawyer is able to secure an out-of-court settlement, thus avoiding the time and expense of a court trial.Who Should Represent YouWhile there are some litigators who practice general tort law, because the field of personal injury is so vast and complex, it is best to secure the services of specialist, such as a Denver auto accident attorney if you have been in such an incident. Denver auto accident attorneys are familiar not only with the fine points of motor vehicle law as it pertains to injury mishaps, but also the ways in which insurance companies attempt to evade their obligations. The best Denver Auto Accident Attorney is one who has actually worked for the insurance industry - for obvious reasons.Lawyer or Attorney?You may note that the terms Denver personal injury attorney and Colorado personal injury lawyer are used interchangeably. While it is true that every Colorado personal injury lawyer can and does act as an attorney, not every attorney is necessarily a lawyer licensed by the state bar association. If you are injured due to someone's negligence or reckless behavior, it's in your best interest to make sure your Denver personal injury attorney is also an experienced and qualified Colorado personal injury lawyer.You Don't Need Money Up FrontMost Denver personal injury attorneys provide free initial consultations and will accept part of your award as payment for his/her services - meaning that if your case is not successful, s/he receives nothing. This also means that your Denver personal injury attorney is very motivated to win your case!

When One Should Hire a Personal Injury Attorney

There are a certain group of attorneys that are rarely spoken about. These lawyers have been overshadowed by other types of lawyers who practice corporate law, human rights law and the many other kinds of law. The group of attorneys I am talking about is the personal injury attorneys, especially the ones is Boca Raton. So who are these attorneys I am talking about? A personal injury attorney is one who fights for human rights by way of making sure victims of accidents are compensated and reimbursements for damages, injuries and any other kinds of distress experienced by the victims.One of the rights U.S. residents have is that when someone is injured as a result of an accident, the person has a right to be compensated. It could be as simple as tripping in the streets of Boca Raton because a slab that was not well placed all the way to a very complex case where someone is hit by an oncoming automobile. A citizen is entitled to be reimbursed for the damages and injuries on them. Another possibility is that there were a number of people looking at you when you fell. As it may happen, may be some of them laughed at you. You can imagine how embarrassing and humiliating that can be. Everyone acts differently to various situations. Such an incident can make someone lock themselves in the house and never come out.If such a thing happens and you are in Boca Raton, you should look into getting a personal injury attorney. You will explain to them what happened as accurately as possible. One of the great things about the personal injury attorneys in Boca Raton is that they provide free consultation. After consulting with the lawyer, they will do their research on past cases dealing with such incidences so that they can file an effective lawsuit that will ensure the victim is compensated. In the example above about tripping and falling on the slab, a lawsuit will more than likely be filed against the city of Boca Raton. Doing this on your own would be difficult. But if you get a personal injury attorney from Boca Raton to represent you, then your chances of compensation are greatly increased. Another good thing about the personal injury attorneys in Boca Raton is that some of them will not charge legal fees until the case has been won.

Why Personal Injury Law firms should be your Best Friends

Unwanted injuries are not coolSooner or later, we're all faced with an injury caused by someone who was reckless or careless with their actions; whether it was an injury in the workplace, a medical malpractice or even an auto accident. Whatever the case may be, some of these injuries may cause some hindrances with our lives. When we break our arm or leg, get some stitches or get sick, we're only functioning at 50% less than what we're capable of doing. With injuries like these where are caused by another person or group, you want to file a lawsuit against them and seek justice and compensation for what they did to you. This is where personal injury lawyers come in.Things to keep in mindEvery year, there are over hundreds of personal injury lawsuits filed. Keep in mind that not all lawyers you see will specialize or have a hint of how to deal with personal injury lawsuits. Your lawyer should also have some contacts within the medical profession as well to help build your case. Basically, more time is spent preparing for the case rather than handling the case in court; like witness interviews, depositions, motion filing and so on. Your lawyer needs to be 100% prepared all the time. Sometimes injuries that has befallen you or your family may not be treated so easily. If your physician has given you the wrong set of medications or dosage which caused you unwanted health effects, then you need to hire an injury lawyer who specializes in medical malpractice. The more serious the injury, the more you'll want your lawyer to be as experienced as possible. If you or your family has acquired an injury which needs lifelong medical attention, like brain damage or spinal injuries, then you need to have a lawyer who's won cases like these. Any other lawyer would just have you waste money and time.Other injuries caused by car accidents, industrial accidents, product defect will have lawyers who specialize in those areas. Remember that your personal injury lawyer's goal is to get a huge settlement from your insurance company; it's not your job to worry about those. But regardless of your lawyer's specialization, it's very important that he/she guarantees you a fair trial as well as protection of your rights during your trial. The more experienced your lawyer is, the better your chances are of winning the trial and get a settlement for your injuries.

Why Personal Injury Law firms should be your Best Friends

Unwanted injuries are not coolSooner or later, we're all faced with an injury caused by someone who was reckless or careless with their actions; whether it was an injury in the workplace, a medical malpractice or even an auto accident. Whatever the case may be, some of these injuries may cause some hindrances with our lives. When we break our arm or leg, get some stitches or get sick, we're only functioning at 50% less than what we're capable of doing. With injuries like these where are caused by another person or group, you want to file a lawsuit against them and seek justice and compensation for what they did to you. This is where personal injury lawyers come in.Things to keep in mindEvery year, there are over hundreds of personal injury lawsuits filed. Keep in mind that not all lawyers you see will specialize or have a hint of how to deal with personal injury lawsuits. Your lawyer should also have some contacts within the medical profession as well to help build your case. Basically, more time is spent preparing for the case rather than handling the case in court; like witness interviews, depositions, motion filing and so on. Your lawyer needs to be 100% prepared all the time. Sometimes injuries that has befallen you or your family may not be treated so easily. If your physician has given you the wrong set of medications or dosage which caused you unwanted health effects, then you need to hire an injury lawyer who specializes in medical malpractice. The more serious the injury, the more you'll want your lawyer to be as experienced as possible. If you or your family has acquired an injury which needs lifelong medical attention, like brain damage or spinal injuries, then you need to have a lawyer who's won cases like these. Any other lawyer would just have you waste money and time.Other injuries caused by car accidents, industrial accidents, product defect will have lawyers who specialize in those areas. Remember that your personal injury lawyer's goal is to get a huge settlement from your insurance company; it's not your job to worry about those. But regardless of your lawyer's specialization, it's very important that he/she guarantees you a fair trial as well as protection of your rights during your trial. The more experienced your lawyer is, the better your chances are of winning the trial and get a settlement for your injuries.

A Guide To Hiring The Best Personal Injury Law Firm For Your Case

A personal injury law firm is a professional organization of attorneys who take on a variety of cases to help those who may be victims of someone's actions. This type of case is one that can involve a number of different circumstances, but it often involves an accident or incident in which a person is hurt as a result of the actions or inactions of another. These attorneys specialize in this particular area of law, which gives these professionals more insight and know-how in handling these cases.A personal injury law firm can help individuals or groups in these types of situations. Numerous law groups like this are available. Some professionals are better versed or capable of handling specific cases, though. As you take into consideration who to hire to represent you, consider a few important tips.Hire a professional firm with experienced attorneys on staff who are available to take your case. Ensure the person you work with does not have too many cases. Otherwise, your case may not receive the attention it deserves. Additionally, it is not in your best interest to rely on a professional tackling many different clients at one time.Look for an area of specialization. Many of the best firms have attorneys who specialize in various types of injuries. Some may deal with birth trauma while others may focus on asbestos, for example. If the attorney or group does have specialization this may mean it has an extensive medical understanding of the condition. Thus, it may have the necessary resources to prove the injuries were the result of inaction, malpractice or negligence in another way.Select a personal injury law firm you feel confident working with for your particular case. Ask questions to get to know those professionals you will work with during the case. Find out what their recommendation is. Do they believe you have a case? If not, it may not be worth pursuing with this group.Research track records and ask for examples of how the attorney will handle the case. What type of research, medical professionals and other investigative work with the organization do to prove your case? What limitations are in place? Will this affect your ability to win your lawsuit?Trust them. If you do not feel as if you can trust the person standing next to you in court, that person should not be there. Ultimately, your life and financial status relies on the ability of this person to prove your case. You should feel valued by the organization.A personal injury law firm can help you to achieve your goal of proving that you were a victim. This group can help you to show that you deserve financial compensation for the injuries you suffered as a direct result of the actions or inactions of another person or business. Since these types of lawsuits can be difficult to pursue and win, having an experienced professional by your side is the route to go. Interview a few to find out who can offer you the best possible opportunity to win your case.

A Conversation With Adam Laurie

His profile include working as a computer programmer on PDP-8 and other mini computers, various Unix, Dos and CP/M based micro computers as they emerged in the eighties. Adam Laurie gave the world first CD ripper ever, 'CDGRAB'. As the internet evolved, Adam and (his brother) Ben became interested in open source projects, and they come up with 'Apache-SSL'-which went on to become the de-facto standard secure web server. Since then Adam is actively involved in busting several myths about wireless technologies, Infrared devices and bluetooth protocols. Lately, Adam unveiled his latest research about RFID's and different threats to privacy. Adam also released a python library "RFIDIOt" for accessing and reading RFID devices. Adam and Ben also pioneered the concept of re-using military data centers (housed in underground nuclear bunkers) as secure hosting facilities. Adam has been a senior member of staff at DEFCON since 1997, and also acted as a member of staff during the early years of the Black Hat Briefings.
Omer: Adam, please introduce yourself.
Adam: Well, I started off with computers in early eighties, when my father was the editor of a computer magazine in UK. So before the computers and the windows that we see today, he used to bring along micro computers, which seems to be pretty interesting for kids. I and my brother used to play with these machines and then my father brought them back to magazine. So we almost witnessed the whole evolution of the computers.
Omer: Since how long have you been associated with events like Black Hat and DefCon?
Adam: The first DefCon that I attended was DefCon IV. Then I attended the DefCon V again and became a "goon" there and there has been no stopping ever since. So, it is almost over 10 years now. When Black Hat first started off, a lot of goons working for DefCon also worked for Black Hat, but it was only for a couple of years. As soon as it became a public commercial event, they hired staff for the work that goons used to do.
Omer: You wrote the first CD ripper, how do you feel about it? RIAA and other recording associations and must be a great fan of yours?
Adam: (Laughs) the problem is that when I wrote the first CD ripper "CDGRAB", the hard disk was so expensive and it used to fill all the hard disk space. So commercially it was really a stupid thing to do, because it would just fill up the entire hard disk and that would cost you 30 times more then a CD. So when I wrote the tool there was no commercial use of it, until years later when someone came up with compression standards and hard disk space got cheaper.
Omer: Are you still maintaining the tool 'CDGRAB'?
Adam: Not really. It was written even before Windows was a popular environment. It was a command line tool originally, but we did a Windows version too. It was programmed in C. Then we just stopped maintaining it, we got distracted by the internet phenomenon so much that we started looking into other ideas.
Omer: You have also been a part of Apache-SSL project, which later became the de-facto standard of the secure web. How the whole idea did come to life?
Adam: It is actually my brother's idea. I have been involved in the later stages to do the testing, release and documentation. It was Ben Laurie who actually coded the Apache-SSL. The whole idea came even before the internet. We had email addresses even before the web was really famous. We started with bulletin boards (fidonet) and then when internet came along, there was a company in the UK, called "Daemon", who was actually just bunch of people chatting on the bulletin boards, before they formed this company. So they were just chatting that if 100 of us could get together, may be we could buy a dedicated leased line onto a service provider, and we'll just put up some modems there and then you can just dial in and get on to the internet. We were one of the first groups in the UK, who pooled up the resources together to get on to the internet and that company later became one of the biggest service providers in UK. It has nothing to do with us; we were just the first customers. We then started doing the internet projects and we realized that there is no secure open source web server over the internet. U.S had some border restrictions over the use of cryptography. Outside the U.S you couldn't get a cryptographic web server. So we went to the UK government and asked that what the rules for using crypto in UK are. They responded that its somewhat a grey area, we are still not sure, but just keep a record of whatever you send across and that shouldn't be a problem. We thought that it's not something really practical. But luckily then Cambridge University and Oxford University stepped forward and said that we will do the distribution for you, you write the code and then publish it to us. We'll put it on our public servers. So technically this makes them the publisher of the software and if they have any legal challenges to face, they have big legal departments who can deal with this.
Omer: Was this a formal association with Oxford University and Cambridge University?
Adam: Not really. It was an informal association. It was just an agreement. My brother wrote the code, we published it to them; and they put it onto their web servers. And then it became the de-facto standard of the web, because it was the only one around.
Omer: Were you guys expecting it to be that big?
Adam: We never expected it to be that big.
Omer: You have also been held responsible for finding some critical bluetooth bugs? What was that?
Adam: Well I discovered Blue Snarfing, it is actually a problem found in bluetooth phones that can be exploited to pull out phone books and other information without the knowledge of the owner. The problem was quite wide spread and it involved some of the very popular business phones like Nokia 6310i. There was a great problem communicating with the cell phone manufacturers, because they were not just used to the idea of someone coming to them and saying that you have a problem. So, you know, the whole idea of full disclosure and the philosophy of open source are quite alien to them. At first, they treated the problem with suspicion that why would you tell us or I am trying to blackmail them. So, they really didn't understand that all we want is to get the problem fixed. We want to use the technology, here's the security hole, and this is how you reproduce it, just go ahead and fix it.
Omer: Has it been fixed now?
Adam: It has on most phones now. In fact, about a year later, they arranged bluetooth security events. It's actually a nice thing to do. All manufacturers get together in hotel, do the interoperability tests, and run them through security procedures. There's no compensation on that level, where everything is designed to function properly. We did this for around 18 months and it was quite a success. We found many problems and they fixed it before it hits the street. But then they discontinued the program and I don't think that they are doing any security specific testing any more, so I do expect more problems.
Omer: Lately you have been inspired by RFID's. Please tell us about that.
Adam: Okay. There are two areas that I am looking into. One is where RFID is used as an authentication token like you have door entry systems. So, the problem there is that all the tag is doing is giving out just an ID number, which they claim is unique, like your door key is unique, but it can be of course copied. The industry is trying to tell us that an electronic key is somehow magically different and it cannot be copied. So I demonstrated that these RFID's can be pretty easily copied and a good copy will open the door and it's not perfectly safe to use the technology. Actually there was quite an interesting situation recently, when there was a company that threatened to sue on breach of patents if they revealed how their systems work or if they demonstrated a device that can clone the door keys. So what I have been doing is using manufacturer's own technology against them. So what I do is that instead of building emulation, I take an existing door tag and reprogrammed it to pretend to be another tag or even to pretend to be another manufacturer's authentication token. So what I found was original methods that manufacturer used to program the door tags in the first place and what protocols do they use.
Omer: You have ruined infrared devices, explored wi-fi environments, busted bluetooth and now demystifying RFID's. Why are you against technology? (In good humor)
Adam: (Laughs) I am not against technology. I am against inappropriately used technology. I think technology is great. The reason why I wanted them to fix bluetooth is that I liked the technology and I wanted to be able to rely on it. I don't want it to make me insecure and the same is with RFID's. I think that the idea is dangerous that the tags are magically unique and they cannot be cloned, of course they can be cloned.
Omer: Why do you think that there is a gap between the product development and the security of the products? Lousy administrators and poorly configured devices is one thing, but the intrinsically flawed protocols, buggy stacks and second-rate implementations is another. What do you think could be the reason?
Adam: Well I think it's usually the cost. The manufacturers are just looking for ways to increase revenues and doing a proper security is often an expected thing and they would say that well, we'll worry about it later, if it becomes a problem. So the security of the system is second consideration and by the time it becomes a problem, it's already too late because it's already deployed. At this stage they should stop and do what they should have done in the first place. But the culture is changing. The internet has gone through a very long and painful process of learning that. The internet used to be the same software vendors and they never always released patches as Microsoft is doing it now. The old Microsoft would say that there are no problems, play it down and hope nobody hears about it, discredit the person who find the problem in the first place. But they realized that actually engaging with the open source and even the hacker community is a good thing for every one. It's about revealing problems and getting them fixed and its far better to admit to the public that you have an issue, deal with it quickly rather then trying to cover it up and then the public found out that you have an issue any ways and then you just look bad. You actually look quite good if you say "yup, we got that wrong but here's the fix". Everyone will forgive and forget, because they know that where there'll be complex system, there will be problems.
Omer: In recent times, the ethics of full disclosure has been questioned. There are more corporate and political pressures on security researchers, especially if you remember Michael Lynn's controversy last year. What is your take on this?
Adam: Well again I think it's very dangerous that the commercial world is getting such a strong foothold into the rules that govern what we can do in the world of security, the rules about reverse engineering and so on. When laws start to back up philosophies that if there is something bad, you shouldn't talk about it rather then you should fix it. No one is allowed to talk about it; no one is allowed to fix it because in theory nobody knows that its there and what we found is that full disclosure does actually work. Manufacturers will fix things if you publicly disclose the fact that they've got a problem. If you don't, they would tend not to because they don't need to and they can save the money. But the bad guys would know about the problem. If the bunch of amateurs, who have nothing to gain, can find problems, then so can bunch of criminals, who have a lot to gain, financially motivated, they have the organizations, they have the skill, they are going to find the problem. So your best defense against that is to encourage people to look for problems and to deal with problems rather then punishing them for this. I think this is the most dangerous thing to do. They have been publishing about the so-called "hacker tools", but what's a hacker tool? If I write a tool that can catch the clones of the door entry tag, is that a hacker tool or is that a tool that the industry is using anyway to program the tags in the first place and if I am afraid to publish it because I will be prosecuted then the problem never gets fixed because nobody is even aware about it other then the bad guys.
Omer: How does your lab look like?
Adam: Imagine a big pile of random cables and wires, you know, the mad scientist lab basically. I collect a lot of hardware and whenever I see a device that I'd think might be usable, I buy it. I take lots of electronic out of junk piles as well, so if I see an old tape, I'll just rip the magnetic tape and use it somewhere. I keep on doing lots of random stuff. I have a very chaotic lab, 3 or 4 laptops tossing around, popped up computers everywhere.
Omer: Thank you for your time Adam. It has been fun talking to you.
Adam: Thanks to you too.
Interview concluded.




Ausric Solutions - Manchester based Web Design and Development company. We offer a lot more e.g. Logo Design, IT Support, Network Support, Security and Disaster Management.
Web Design and Development Manchester



ย