> Beyond pure operations, IRC was also a social space with its own culture, rituals, and hierarchy. You proved yourself by sharing information, by having access to tools before others did, by being present when something interesting happened. The channels were chaotic, frequently toxic, and also a brutal apprenticeship in network security for anyone who could not afford a conference ticket. Many people who are now respected professionals in DFIR, threat intelligence, and red teaming learned the fundamentals there.

toxic indeed - I somehow ended up in IRC channels as a curious, lonely ten year old with a computer and parents that frequently confined me to my room with nothing but a computer, an internet connection (which they thought could only be used for email), and books. One of my more formative experiences was getting my pc pwned, getting so upset about it, I resolved to learn everything I could get my hands about it in my teens. Never got super far as some did, but that curiosity sparked in me a drive that has lasted nearly 30 years now.

I'm sure language issues motivated the choice but I think this would be a lot more pleasant to read in your own voice and not in an LLMs. It reads pretty slick and magaziney.

Oh man, this is all one solid block of "I remember that!" nostalgia. For example, in the late 90s I volunteered in a DALNet support channel, helping people diagnose and remove exactly those infections. [0]

We had a hard policy of never going "I'll connect to it and remove it for you." Sure, it could be quicker, but it would also be legally problematic, especially if the person seeking help was actually an impersonator.

[0] I admit, I harmlessly pranked one very close friend with a CD-ROM tray that kept moving "on its own". And pointed out some weak passwords to school IT...

Your ads are out of control.

I remember looking up, or maybe even using? Back Orifice in the high school library, and the librarian being somewhat scandalized by the logo, thinking I was looking at porn.

What, no mention of SoftIce or IDA? What about W32Dasm? OllyDBG? Even WinDbg has a place.