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Apple Rumor Casualty...

Interesting to hear of more gay users on the boards. maybe we should have another coming out thread...

now i'm sorry, but data on your computer is on private property, and it should be considered private. i don't care if the thing is websharing or just left filesharing on accidently or something... it's still clear to me that accessing confidential material, however poorly protected, is not just public domain.

i feel for him... and as someone emailed him, he is really cute...

pnw
 
I have never, ever seen a rumor article before that posted someones personal information.

Anyone know the personal information for the guy who runs pbzone.com?

Look at the tone of the article. It was malicious.

"First, it appears the employee that posted the files is one Adam Attarian. . ."

Who does this?

They saw that it was a low-level employee who didn't have access to Apple Legal, and they said, "Huh. What's he gonna do to us. Screw him."

I'm surprised it didn't have "nyah nyah nyah nyah nyah" at the end of it.
 
now i'm sorry, but data on your computer is on private property, and it should be considered private. i don't care if the thing is websharing or just left filesharing on accidently or something... it's still clear to me that accessing confidential material, however poorly protected, is not just public domain.
Click to expand...

Just to make this clear from a legal POV, the web is public. If the guy had had to 'break in' on the other hand he would be guilty of espionage, etc. Anything accessible via the web is public. If you don't take precautions like securing your pages, you are SOL. This is an unfortunate case but he is guilty of negligence. It's like saying "I didn't know the gun was loaded, I'm soooo sorry you're son shot himself in the head with it, it should have been locked up and not loaded."

I know that's extreme but it is a accurate comparison.

There have been several incidents with multi-national corporations losing millions because employees posted confidential info on their webserver in a public directory, even though there was no obvious link to it (think a path like this: www.domain.com/kajlsfjlas/dsfljldfj/dglagjldsj/dlsajfdlagljsl;/somedirectory/secretstuff.pdf

Obscurity does not equal security.

So learn how to use .htaccess at least.

Better yet don't put your secrets any where near your webserver. Yes he made an honest mistake but well, it cost him his job. I would lose my job too if I let company secrets out, even the most inane... even worse if I left a back door that would compromise other employees. Imagine if this guy had left a password to the Apple network in that directory, not just screenshots.....
 
sleezeball site known as www.pbzone.com

i urge all of you to visit the sleezeball site otherwise known as www.pbzone.com and register yr feelings about this issue.
if you go the site, and read the way they have phrased the matter, there is obviously something more to this story than just posting of an boy's files.
there is really something more evil about this. pbzone goes out of its way to actually post private details about this.
how many other sites do you know that would post these kinds of details, especially when they dont come from the person who owns the info?
total abuse of the net's power. using the net to destroy.
pls pls go to their site, and voice yr disapproval of their action.
how can we shut them down?
two days into this and no apology.
real scumbags.
 
pbzone

I agree, what Adam did was stupid, but he is a kid. What pbzone did was inexcusable they are supposedly professionals. All I can do is boycott pbzone AND all of its sponsors. I encourage others to do the same.
 
Originally posted by garyhoare
Anyone know the personal information for the guy who runs pbzone.com?
Click to expand...

I have met the guy who runs it. I have pictures of him from a party at macworld. However, I would not post them, or any of his information, because I don't want to be an ass like he has been.

Funny part: One picture has him and Ryan Meader in it. Two jerks in one picture!
 
Poor Guy!

The kid was negligent. He knows this and admits this, and realises that Apple didn't have much of an alternative but to fire him.

For the people on these boards shouting out how he was negligent and deserved to be fired... save your breath. Adam already said it and he realises it.

I'm inquisitive, I take screenshots of things without knowing why, and I can soooo see how his snapshots were discovered by someone else on the web. I don't believe he was intending to leak them, I think he is just an Apple Geek like some of the rest of us (including me) who are in awe of the technology.

I feel so bad for him. I don't know what an Apple Store job pays.... but it doesn't matter. I would love to work in one, for the communal aspect of Apple Geeks Being Together! Seriously, Apple Users are in a minority and we really only make a wide circle of aquaintances with other Apple Users over the web, not often in person.

Working in an Apple Store, with other people who love the technology and with whom you can share your knowledge and learn from others, while help bring new customers to the platform, must be frickin' cool. The store itself is cool. Going to work at CompUSA won't be the same. And damn if I would like a black Apple T-shirt.

People like those at PBZONE are *******s. I love rumors as much as the next guy, but a rumor site goes so far as to not only post internal Apple pictures taken from a hidden part of someone else's website, but to not even give them the good grace to let them know you've done it and INSTEAD publish a detailed account of who this person is, you are a scumball sleazebag extraordinare.

I do not buy their claims that an Apple Employee alerted them to this, I see this as them trying to back track. I mean come on, once these pictures were discovered by Apple, the time between them finding out and firing the guy would be minimal. Bang, you are gone.

Are we to believe that the PBZONE source is sufficiently high up at Apple that he would hear about this impending dismissal so quickly, and by the same token stupid enough to immediately talk to a rumor site himself? Jeez, give me a break.

They are responsible for this guy's firing and they should own up and apologise, then shut their stupid site down and contemplate the consequences of their actions, luckily for them their actions don't have the sort of repercussions that Adam's actions have had for him.

I wish there was some way Apple could, instead of firing him, discipline him then take him back. But I doubt that would happen.

ADAM - GOOD LUCK IN EVERYTHING ELSE YOU DO. YOU COME ACROSS AS HONEST, THOUGHTFUL, INTELLIGENT, DESPITE THIS FIASCO! YOU WILL SUCCEED. P.S. TELL YOUR PARENTS THROUGH TRUTH... IN YOUR OWN TIME.
 
Sorry, It's a Little Hard to Sugar Coat this Pointy Stick

After the last story about the leak and subsequent civil suit against Jose Lopez in December, this is a news story if pbzone decided to make it one -- and they did.

Does it suck for the guy it's happening to, yes.

Did pbzone do something wrong, no more than every other news organization in the business.

Is this going to snowball a bit, probably.

Is Adam at the cusp of some real trouble in his life, most definitely.

Though the ball is entirely in Apple's court.

In a civil and/or criminal case, everything you say or do will be used against you. And Apple Legal has plenty of ammo, the web journal and the lag in pulling the copyrighted info and mp3s will hurt.

It's a little too late now, but immediate lock-down and absolute silence on the subject is the only "safe" alternative when faced with possible civil liability.

:(

Good luck Adam...
 
Wow.. the nerve....

So Let me get this right ..... An apple employee in austin( funny his name and info seem to be missing........) reported Adam at 1 so then this unnamed employee or one of the 2 supervisors, or Apple security took the time to call / e-mail the PBzone operator and told him that this had happened???? YEAH RIGHT .. not even a clever lie.... Like I said why dont we see the names of these others involved in the story? I mean if your going to do the news might as well fully report it.

What we have with all of Adams info posted is a WITCH HUNT.. It would seem to me the owner of the PBzone one Doug Landry of Delta Design
which is located at

[edited]

seems to have an issue with Adam. Might it be he is openly gay ?

if it was not a witch hunt and simply a news story why would THIS have been posted
UPDATE 14:52 CST--The images on the employee's server are no longer reachable at the above address. He moved the port for web traffic from 80 to 8080, and took the images down completely.

WTH?? he tries to start correcting a mistake and you JUMP ON HIM MORE??? That is WAY WAY out of line. Doug I think your a JERK and a bigot.

Why was this post edited ??? all of the info I gave came from doing a whois on thepbzone.com website?????
 
I agree with most of your posts...yes Adam was negligent and I do feel very sorry for him. However, I don?t think he meant to do any harm; he seems truly devastated by the loss of his job at Apple. I know I would be.

Two additional points to add?

1) I hope all of you here in the MacRumors community who are outraged by pbzone leaking Adam?s personal information send an email to them to show your disapproval. Although they did nothing that was technically illegal, it was without a doubt unethical. Let?s flood their email boxes with complaints on behalf of this young man and perhaps he will get some kind of public Apology.

2) To Adam if you may be reading this, I know right now you?re devastated about the loss of your job, but I think once the dust settles and emotions cool a bit you should go back to your store and setup an appointment to speak with the store manager. From your weblogs it seems you have a good working relationship with everyone at the store. I then think you need to share you feelings with the store management the same way you?ve shared them in your journals. You know what you did was wrong, but you feel very bad about it, etc. Although the final say is up to Apple whether you get your job back, at the very least perhaps your store manager would be willing to write a letter on your behalf that you can give to future employers who will no doubt need to verify your previous employment and check your references. This will probably help you in the future if there are any questions from your future employer about this incident.

Best wishes to you...
 
supporters of pbzone: smalldog.com & macdebate.com

can you pls write to both of these places and tell both of these companies which are involved with pbzone that we do not approve of their support for pbzone, and that they both should announce to us what their involvement with pbzone is.
thnx very much.
www.smalldog.com
www.macdebate.com
 
Originally posted by Skywalkers hand
How does him being gay have ANYTHING to do with this?
Click to expand...

It's just that some people are suprised when somebody lets it show instead of whispering about it.

BTW, this boy goofed. I'm sorry he got fired. He did it without thinking (which is why so many bad things happen in the world. Like the next war we're going to start in a moment).

I disapprove the way PBZone handled the case. It is an intelligent rule of survival in journalism not to endanger your sources. Now what did they do?

(Sort of) destroy a source for the benefit of spreading (extremely lame) inside information.

Show off by naming the source, for the sole purpose of getting him into trouble thus underlining their "investigativeness".

Congratulations! Wow, how cool these PBZone people must be!

O.K. i know what you're going to say. As a proper citizen we're all supposed to report anyone who breaks the law. That's the moral standard in our society, but it's not my moral standard. This might be because I was born with a brain. Check your point of view, your moral standards supplier (and your brain if you feel like it).

What will happen? In the future, everybody who might even have considered to leak anything to PBZone will drop the idea. Thus, PBZone will turn from a lame site to an extremely lame site vanishing in the dark holes of unimportantness where they belong.

Personally, I will reject links from PBZone to any site I administer. Furthermore, I think these guys should be denied the use of Macintosh hardware for, say, 5 years.

_________

It's desirable that those who yield power
recieved wisedom equal or greater than the power they yield.
(Whishful thinking)
 
Moving Forward

I don't care if Adam was at fault or if PBzone was at fault. It happened. The consequences have happened. Adam, like all of us, must now understand the critical difference between what has happened and what is still to come.

What has happened cannot be changed. We can learn and comment but not amend events which are even one minute in the past. For those of us in the macrumors community, if it in any way improves our lives (speaking purely subjectively), then certainly, we can blame, judge, condemn, forgive, ignore. But Adam must move on. Although he cannot impact the past, he can affect the future.

First, remove any even vaguely offensive items from his directory. Commit no further "crimes."

Second, stop feeling sorry for himself. Every minute of his life that is spent in self-pity or self-condemnation is a minute wasted. Learn from mistakes, certainly, but attempt to be dispassionate.

Third, focus on the strengths of his life and use them to bring future happiness and success. He is obviously intelligent, skilled and conscientious. It appears he has good people skills. These will hold him in good stead as he moves forward in his life.

In a week or less, the rest of the world will have forgotten this. Only Adam will remain as a testament to this mistake. I sincerely hope that he can put this to rest in his own life. After all, if we have learned anything it is that the world is remarkably forgiving to those who mistakes, whether they be college freshmen or U.S. presidents. In the end, our most pernicious judges are ourselves.

Good luck to Adam and all who have ever erred.
 
Yeah, the kid made a mistake, although considering how easily accessible the folder is from the "website" it would have happened sooner or later.

However the actions of pbzone are despicable. Not only do they post all the personal details (for no reason that I can think of, except to explicitely get him fired, and possibly thrown from his course - otherwise WHY mention that?), but they stalked him regarding the port change and the files being taken down, etc.

I think it is pretty clear that Apple didn't contact pbzone, and that the owner contacted Apple, or just posted the story without contacting Apple. I wouldn't expect much truth from this guy. Why do I say this? Because Apple would not have wanted the screenshots to be published online or linked to in a story.
 
Powerbook Zone ethics

Adam Attarian has been the victim of an unnamed attacker who searched through his site index and posted information that Adam did not offer to the world. Yes, the information was findable on his site, but he did not provide anyone with a link to that information. The fact that PBZ followed his move to 8080 -and posted it!- is unconscionable.

This information doesn't constitute a rumor, a tip, or any other kind of freely offered information. It is not journalism. IMHO, it's the first cousin to breaking and entering.

By pilfering these screenshots AND attaching Adam's name, Powerbook Zone has caused Adam to lose his job. He did not violate the NDA. It was violated for him by Powerbook Zone, causing him monetary damages, pain, and suffering.

If I were him, I'd hire a lawyer and sue the hell out of Powerbook Zone. IMHO, he'd own the creeps, lock, stock, and barrel by this time next year.

I'm not him though, so I just contacted Powerbook Zone's advertisers (whom I patronize) to ask them if they want to support these kinds of ethics. I hope others do the same.
 
Wow... This thread is turning into a witch hunt. I remember seeing this thread at shashdot about how they found the home address of some guy who was responsible for the majority of the spam that fills your inboxes, and posted it online. Everybody was encouraged to sign him up for every free mailing thing that they could find. It was truly hilarious.

I do think that pbzone was wrong in posting this guy's personal info. They probably got anxious, thinking this was some big rumor, so the put up all of the info. Unfortunately, it just turned out to be some internal applications, and a guy getting fired.
 
I feel bad for him, even though it was partly his fault. :(

On a separate note, I like this little touch Arn:
"Apple Rumor Casualty...
Approved/Edited by arn on Saturday February 08 07 57 PM
from the not a good thing department"

Instead of from the rumors department, it was from the "not a good thing" department.

The little things are the best. :)
 
Re: What is "private?"

Originally posted by MacWhispers
This whole incident raises an important question.

Just what are the rights to materials many of us have posted on our web servers? Does the fact that they are "accessible" make them public property?
Click to expand...

This is a critical point.

If I drive my car to a public parking lot and accidentally leave it unlocked, am I granting anyone the right to enter it?

If I set my lunch box on a picnic table and walk away for a moment, does that give anyone the right to open it?

One might say, 'You'd be a fool to do those things, because people will steal from you in an instant!'

Correct. They will steal.

In a very few years, the internet will be regulated like the public place that it is. We don't live in an anarchy, we live in a democracy, and people will soon demand a minimum of protection.

Let's face it, no one would go downtown to a baseball game if there weren't cops around.
 
Originally posted by longday


I know I'm a macgay, and I know of at least 3 other macgays. I'm pretty sure being gay must use the same part of the brain as being a Macuser. More open to alternative thinking. (i.e. gay & MacOS versus straight & Windows).

Seems perfectly logical to me javascript:smilie(':)')
Click to expand...

Bigot.

I'm pretty sure being straight uses the part of the brain that stops humans from abusing their own and other peoples sexual organs.

This kind of bull is the driving force behind the P.C. movement.

By the way, I'm born in December and that gives me the intellectual measure of the other eleven twelfths of the world.

Did you know that 80% of statistics are made up and that more than half of the population has to live on a below average wage.

this really is a witch hunt, I wonder if witches float or drown?
 
Re: Wow.. the nerve....

Originally posted by HornetOSX
What we have with all of Adams info posted is a WITCH HUNT.. It would seem to me the owner of the PBzone one [snip] of Delta Design
which is located at

[snip]
Click to expand...
Duff-man says.....here all you people are berating and slagging pbzone for posting personal info and now you resort to the same thing....just a tad hypocritical, no? i thought "an eye for an eye" went out with the dark ages. oh yeah!
 
Originally posted by kettle


Bigot.

I'm pretty sure being straight uses the part of the brain that stops humans from abusing their own and other peoples sexual organs.

This kind of bull is the driving force behind the P.C. movement.

By the way, I'm born in December and that gives me the intellectual measure of the other eleven twelfths of the world.

Did you know that 80% of statistics are made up and that more than half of the population has to live on a below average wage.

this really is a witch hunt, I wonder if witches float or drown?
Click to expand...

OMG That whole comment was tongue in cheek, you're trippin.
 
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