Masters of Deception (MOD) was a

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

–based group of hackers, most widely known in media for their exploits of telephone company infrastructure and later prosecution.

Origin of Masters of Deception

MOD's initial membership grew from meetings on Loop-Around Test Lines that led to legendary collaborations to hack RBOC phone switches and the various

minicomputer A minicomputer, or colloquially mini, is a class of smaller general purpose computers that developed in the mid-1960s and sold at a much lower price than mainframe and mid-size computers from IBM and its direct competitors. In a 1970 survey, ' ...

s and mainframes used to administer the telephone network. They successfully remained underground using alternative handles to hide even their true hacker identities. Acid Phreak founded the Masters of Deception with Scorpion and HAC. The name itself was, among other things, a mockery of Legion of Doom (LOD), as 'M' is one letter up in the alphabet from 'L', although the name originally was a flexible acronym that could be used to identify membership in situations where anonymity would be the best course of action. It could stand for "Millions of Dollars" just as easily as "Masters of Deception." It is claimed that the mockery of the LOD name was a statement to the underground that LOD had lost its direction. Several LOD members were close friends of MOD who had been raided and indicted by the government, causing the majority of those who remained to drop out of the underground for safety reasons. In their absence, LOD largely fell into disarray causing the disagreement and disillusionment that led

Phiber Optik Mark Abene (born February 23, 1972) is an American information security expert and entrepreneur, originally from New York City. Better known by his pseudonym Phiber Optik, he was once a member of the hacker groups Legion of Doom and Masters of ...

to align himself with MOD in an effort to restore the direction of the spirit of underground hacking.

Members of MOD

The original Masters of Deception included:

Mark Abene Mark Abene (born February 23, 1972) is an American information security expert and entrepreneur, originally from New York City. Better known by his pseudonym Phiber Optik, he was once a member of the hacker groups Legion of Doom and Masters o ...

("Phiber Optik"), Paul Stira ("Scorpion"), Elias Ladopoulos ("Acid Phreak"), HAC, John Lee ("Corrupt") and Julio Fernandez ("Outlaw"). Additional members who have remained anonymous include: Supernigger (also of DPAK), Wing, Nynex Phreak, Billy_The_Kid, Crazy Eddie, The Plague, ZOD, Seeker, Red Knight (who was also a member of

Cult of the Dead Cow Cult of the Dead Cow, also known as cDc or cDc Communications, is a computer hacker and DIY media organization founded in 1984 in Lubbock, Texas. The group maintains a weblog on its site, also titled "Cult of the Dead Cow". New media are rele ...

), Lord Micro, n00gie and peaboy (a.k.a. MCI Sprinter).

Philosophy

Masters of Deception operated differently in many respects to previous hacking groups. Although they openly shared information with each other, they took a controversial view on sharing information outside the group. It was believed that access to MOD's knowledge should be earned via degrees of initiation and a proven respect for the craft, rather than releasing powerful information into the wild where it could be used for nefarious purposes. A demonstration of responsibility on the part of the initiate was required. This informal compartmentalized protection of more sensitive knowledge was a structure originally employed by LOD in the 1980s, rather successfully. According to Lex Luthor, "I realized early on that only certain people can be trusted with certain information, and certain types of information can be trusted to no one. Giving out useful things to irresponsible people would inevitably lead to whatever thing it was being abused and no longer useful. I was very possessive of my information and frequently withheld things from my articles."

Fall of MOD

As a result of a major nationwide investigation by a joint FBI/

Secret Service A secret service is a government agency, intelligence agency, or the activities of a government agency, concerned with the gathering of intelligence data. The tasks and powers of a secret service can vary greatly from one country to another. Fo ...

task force, five of MOD's members were indicted in 1992 in federal court. The case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stephen Fishbein and Geoffrey S. Berman. Within the next six months (in 1993), all five pleaded guilty and were sentenced to either probation or prison. After the sentencing of Abene, ''

2600: The Hacker Quarterly ''2600: The Hacker Quarterly'' is an American seasonal publication of technical information and articles, many of which are written and submitted by the readership, on a variety of subjects including hacking, telephone switching systems, Intern ...

'', Winter 1993-94, had on its cover a rag doll labeled "BERMAN" stabbed by a dagger.http://www.2600.com/covers/wi931.gif 2600: The Hacker Quarterly, Volume Ten, Number Four, Winter 1993-94

In popular culture

* Singer/songwriter

Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is widel ...

referenced the MOD with the phrase "MOD are you out there?" from her 1995 song " Hello".

Origin of Masters of Deception

Members of MOD

Philosophy

Fall of MOD

In popular culture

References

Further reading