It doesn't say specifically whether or not the college that was defrauded (I'm not arguing that nothing illegal took place there) was using a Blackboard variant or not, but I'd say it's a pretty safe bet that it was. Anyone with access to a magstripe writer (common enough at any technical school) could easily have done what this student did. These systems are simply _not_ secure. Not just "a little insecure", not just "a few minor flaws", but entirely _not_ secure. Just about any technique one would care to name can be used to defraud these things, and Blackboard is trying to use lawyers and spin doctors to cover it up, and everyone loses. The colleges lose money when students beat the system. The students lose money when the colleges won't believe there's a problem. ...and hopefully Blackboard loses money now that word is getting out their system is ancient garbage. CNN.com - Campus hacker gets probation - Apr. 18, 2003 |