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Harry Potter transcript claim doesn't convince

By John Leyden → More by this author
20 Jun 2007 16:06

Meddling muggles boast of last book transcript attack

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A hacker posting on a full disclosure email list run by InSecure.org claims to have obtained a copy of a transcript of the forthcoming book Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

The self-proclaimed hacker - who calls himself Gabriel - claims to have compromised the PCs of one or more workers at Bloomsbury Publishing, the publisher of the Harry Potter books, by tricking them into visiting a hacker-run website infected with malicious code. Workers who visited the site supposedly became infected with a Trojan which allowed the unnamed cracker to extract a draft copy of the highly anticipated final installment of the Harry Potter series, due out on 21 July.

The claims are unsubstantiated by secondary sources and carry with them the whiff of hackers bragging about their cool skillz rather than authenticity.

Also the supposed motive - revealing the ending to make reading the book "useless and boring" and so prevent youngsters from exposure to "neo-paganism", is a little hard to swallow.

Responses to the post (titled Harry Potter 0day) on the email list has been dismissive. "Who are you people and why should I care? Maybe a new exploit would be more useful," said one unwhelmed punter. ®

Bootnote

The posted message claims to expose the names and ways in which two of the characters die, something that has been the subject of much speculation by fans of author J.K.Rowling and the boy wizard. For those not allergic to potential spoilers (of dubious provenance) the post can be found here.

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