A Real Logic Bomb

Logic bomb is a term often used in the media, despite the fact that almost all reporters (there are notable exceptions) have no clue what it means. Well, now we can look at a real one, thanks to forensics work by Keith Jones. He found a real logic bomb while doing forensics on the United States v. Duronio case. I worked the very beginning of this case while Keith and I were both at Foundstone. My small part involved trying to figure out how to restore images of AIX machines from tape. I even bought an AIX box on eBay for experimentation.

You can read about Keith's testimony in this Information Week article. This is the "logic bomb" Keith recovered:



One of the neat aspects of this case is its age: over four years. The media and elsewhere are abuzz with stories of "insider threats," but this has been a problem for a very long time. Congratulations to Keith for testifying on such an important case. If the jury has a clue, the defendant doesn't have a chance.

Update: This story specifically examines the code in question.