In the past two weeks, our MPMLA website has been attacked repeatedly by a hacker and he has been quite successful in many of the battles so far.

I feel I now have a better understanding of how this hacker thinks. I feel like I am in the movie Enemy at the Gates – online version! While I think I am Vasili, I would not be surprised if he also thinks he is Vasili.

Not sure if the hacker also thinks he is Vasili :-)
Who is Vasili?

He is from a different time zone – but both of us now know our computer usage patterns and are awake at the time when the other person is in front of a machine. I can understand his frustration levels when I find out his tricks and I am also sure that he understands the way I would feel when I see him attack successfully time and again. At times I wonder how would it be if he comes in front of me and introduces himself or may be I should do that giving him the element of surprise!

Every time he defaces the website, I clean it up – and then try to remove all traces of his presence. Every time I feel I have captured all his access points, he comes back again with vengeance – this time with a bigger attack. The difficulty level of the attacks have increased after every round.

Happy to know this hacker through his actions, as he appears to be a very smart one – unlike many wannabies who get hold of sample code from some website and think they are hackers! He has taught me some golden rules by his action:

  • What we have with us is precious – many of us do not realize it until it is lost.
  • Stay Hungry – Stay Foolish (This is famous after Steve Jobs mentioned it – I knew it earlier in Tamil as ‘Kattravai Kai Mann Alavu – Kallathavai Ulagalavu’ by Avvaiyar – which means what you know is like a handful of sand, while what you do not know is of the size of the world).

While this hacker could have won many battles so far, I am prepared for a long war – which gives the adrenalin rush that pushes both of us to go to the extremes – he is doing his best to take me out, while I am trying to get rid of him. Now it makes me understand what would have gone in Vasili’s mind!

Going by the assumption that both of us have all the tools and expertise necessary to succeed, two simple rules will decide the winner:

  • Consistency in the passion towards achieving the goal
  • Consistency in the time spent on doing the work that helps accomplish the goal

May the better one win!

By