Matthew Keys, now freed from prison, is ready to get back to journalism

“I work hard, and I’m smart, but I do have an uphill battle going forward.”

Matthew Keys, as seen in March 2018. (credit: Matthew Keys)

It’s fairly common to hear that people who come out of prison are more self-reflective than when they went in.

The same is true of Matthew Keys—the journalist who was convicted in 2016 on three counts of conspiracy and criminal hacking. He’s now ready to better himself.

Earlier this month, Keys was released from the Satellite Prison Camp Atwater, in Atwater, California, after serving out his two-year sentence (he got out a few months early).

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Bundesregierung: 5G-Frequenzen nur bei flächendeckendem Ausbau

Einen schnellen Ausbau des Supernetzes 5G durch beschleunigte Frequenzvergabe will die Bundesregierung. Doch dafür sollen die Betreiber ein flächendeckendes Netz bieten, was diese nicht wollen. (Telekom, Long Term Evolution)

Einen schnellen Ausbau des Supernetzes 5G durch beschleunigte Frequenzvergabe will die Bundesregierung. Doch dafür sollen die Betreiber ein flächendeckendes Netz bieten, was diese nicht wollen. (Telekom, Long Term Evolution)

Effortless French: Mt. Gox and Bitcoin’s roller coaster ride

Review: New documentary illustrates the man behind one of bitcoin’s greatest falls.

Enlarge (credit: Effortless French / Canal+)

After watching the riveting and entertaining nearly two-hour film documentary Effortless French, about the rise and fall of Mt. Gox, the infamous bitcoin exchange, there are two questions (one big, one small) that are never fully answered. (Full disclosure: I was interviewed for this film and appear in multiple scenes, but I did not see any rough cut or portion of the film until I was recently sent a screener.)

First, we still don't have a complete understanding of exactly what happened at Mt. Gox. We probably never will. It's clear that the exchange's Tokyo-based now-ex-CEO Mark Karpelès doesn't really seem to know what happened either. Nor, for that matter, does he seem to be emotionally affected by it in any way that was captured on film.

Launched as a bitcoin exchange in 2010, Mt. Gox quickly became the world's most popular place to trade. But by February 2014, the site pulled the plug and filed for bankruptcy. Mt. Gox blamed its huge losses on hackers who had pilfered 850,000 bitcoins (now worth over $8 billion), taking advantage of a major security flaw. At the time, Karpelès became the most hated person in the bitcoin world for letting it happen right under his nose.

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Analogue Super Nt im Test: FPGA-Zeitmaschine mit minimaler Realitätskrümmung

Analogue Interactive zeigt mit dem Super Nt, wie man eine Retrokonsole wie das Super Nintendo nicht nur reanimiert, sondern ihr direkt einen zweiten digitalen Frühling schenkt. Von Michael Wieczorek (Games, Nintendo)

Analogue Interactive zeigt mit dem Super Nt, wie man eine Retrokonsole wie das Super Nintendo nicht nur reanimiert, sondern ihr direkt einen zweiten digitalen Frühling schenkt. Von Michael Wieczorek (Games, Nintendo)

Qualcomm-Übernahme: Intel könnte versuchen, Broadcom zu kaufen

Um einem Kauf von Qualcomm durch Broadcom zuvorzukommen, soll Intel überlegen, für Broadcomm zu bieten. Alternativ seien kleinere Übernahmen im Gespräch, um im Data-Center- und Smartphone-Markt weiterhin konkurrenzfähig zu sein. (Intel, Broadcom)

Um einem Kauf von Qualcomm durch Broadcom zuvorzukommen, soll Intel überlegen, für Broadcomm zu bieten. Alternativ seien kleinere Übernahmen im Gespräch, um im Data-Center- und Smartphone-Markt weiterhin konkurrenzfähig zu sein. (Intel, Broadcom)

Telekom: 1&1 sollte statt “Ankündigungen Spaten in die Hand nehmen”

Die Telekom wirft United Internet beim Netzausbau “große Ankündigungen, aber kleine Taten” vor. Das Ausbaubündnis von Telekom und Stadtnetzbetreibern stehe jedem offen. (United Internet, Telekom)

Die Telekom wirft United Internet beim Netzausbau "große Ankündigungen, aber kleine Taten" vor. Das Ausbaubündnis von Telekom und Stadtnetzbetreibern stehe jedem offen. (United Internet, Telekom)

Survival: H1Z1 wird fast sofort nach Verkaufsstart kostenlos

Ein paar Tage lang mussten Spieler für H1Z1 einen Kaufpreis bezahlen, nun ist das Programm Free-to-Play. Besonders bei treuen Fans sorgt das für viel Empörung – eine Handvoll Ingame-Extras als Entschädigung ändert daran wenig. (Free-to-play, Steam)

Ein paar Tage lang mussten Spieler für H1Z1 einen Kaufpreis bezahlen, nun ist das Programm Free-to-Play. Besonders bei treuen Fans sorgt das für viel Empörung - eine Handvoll Ingame-Extras als Entschädigung ändert daran wenig. (Free-to-play, Steam)

Voksi ‘Pirates’ New Serious Sam Game With Permission From Developers

Best known for his efforts to defeat anti-piracy protection Denuvo, the cracker known as ‘Voksi’ has revealed another string to his bow. After participating in the closed beta of Serious Sam’s Bogus Detour in 2016, he got friendly with the game’s developers. Now, with their permission, he’s giving the game away for free in an effort to boost sales of the action adventure.

Source: TF, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, torrent sites and more. We also have VPN discounts, offers and coupons

Bulgarian cracker Voksi is unlike many others in his line of work. He makes himself relatively available online, interacting with fans and revealing surprising things about his past.

Only last month he told TF that he is entirely self-taught and had been cracking games since he was 15-years-old, just six years ago.

Voksi is probably best known for his hatred of anti-piracy technology Denuvo and to this day is still one of just four groups/people who have managed to crack v4 of the anti-tamper technology. As such, he and his kind are often painted as enemies of the gaming industry but that doesn’t represent the full picture.

In discussion with TF over the weekend, Voksi told us that he’s a huge fan of the Serious Sam franchise so when he found out about the latest title – Serious Sam’s Bogus Detour (SSBD) – he wanted to play it – badly. That led to a remarkable series of events.

“One month before the game’s official release I got into the closed beta, thanks to a friend of mine, who invited me in. I introduced myself to the developers [Crackshell]. I told them what I do for a living, but also assured them that I didn’t have any malicious intents towards the game. They were very cool about it, even surprisingly cool,” Voksi informs TF.

The game eventually hit the market (without Voksi targeting it, of course) with some interesting additions. As shown in the screenshot taken from the game and embedded below, Voksi was listed as a tester for the game.

An unusual addition to the game credits….

Perhaps even more impressively, official Stream screenshots here show Voksi as a player in the game. It’s not exactly what one might expect for someone in his position but from there, the excitement began to fade. Despite a 9/10 rating on Steam, the books didn’t balance.

“The game was released officially on 20 of June, 2017. Months passed. We all hoped it’d be a success, but sadly that was not the case,” Voksi explains.

“Even with all the official marketing done by Devolver Digital, no one batted an eye and really gave it a chance. In December 2017, I found out how bad the sales really were, which even didn’t cover the expenses for the making game, let alone profit.”

Voksi was really disappointed that things hadn’t gone to plan so he contacted the developers with an idea – why didn’t he get involved to try and drum up some support from an entirely unconventional angle? How about giving a special edition of the game away for free while calling on ‘pirates’ to chip in with whatever they could afford?

“Last week I contacted the main dev of SSBD over Steam and proposed what I can do to help boost the game. He immediately agreed,” Voksi says.

“The plan was to release a build of the game that was playable from start to finish, playable in co-op with up to 4 players, not to miss anything important gameplay wise and add a little message in the bottom corner, which is visible at all times, telling you: “We are small indie studio. If you liked the game, please consider buying it. Thank you and enjoy the game!”

Message at the bottom of the screen

But Voksi’s marketing plan didn’t stop there. This special build of the game is also tied to a unique giveaway challenge with several prizes. It’s underway on Voksi’s REVOLT forum and is intended to encourage more people to play the game and share the word among family, friends and whoever else can support the developers.

Importantly, Voski isn’t getting paid to do any of this, he just wants to help the developers and support a game he feels deserves a lot more attention. For those interested in taking it for a spin, the download links are available here in the official thread.

The ‘pirate’ build – Serious.Sam.Bogus.Detour.B126.RIP-Voksi – is slightly less polished than those available officially but it’s hoped that people will offer their support on Steam and GOG if they like the game.

Source: TF, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, torrent sites and more. We also have VPN discounts, offers and coupons

Glasfaserstudie: Telekom widerspricht Kritik an Vectoring-Förderung in Bayern

Die Telekom und die bayerische Landesregierung wollen Kritiken an ihrer Förderung von Vectoring nicht stehen lassen. Die Gemeinden würden selbst entscheiden, ob nur FTTC gebaut werde. (Glasfaser, Internet)

Die Telekom und die bayerische Landesregierung wollen Kritiken an ihrer Förderung von Vectoring nicht stehen lassen. Die Gemeinden würden selbst entscheiden, ob nur FTTC gebaut werde. (Glasfaser, Internet)

Wave: Midi-Ring bringt Modulationen an den Finger

Mit Wave können Musiker per Handbewegung ihrem Spiel neuen Ausdruck verleihen: Dank Midi-Kompatibilität lassen sich zahlreiche Parameter steuern. Der Fingerring reagiert auf Handbewegungen, zudem soll das fertige Produkt zwei Buttons haben. Aktuell wer…

Mit Wave können Musiker per Handbewegung ihrem Spiel neuen Ausdruck verleihen: Dank Midi-Kompatibilität lassen sich zahlreiche Parameter steuern. Der Fingerring reagiert auf Handbewegungen, zudem soll das fertige Produkt zwei Buttons haben. Aktuell werden per Crowdfunding Unterstützer gesucht. (Audio/Video, Crowdfunding)