Perhaps the only way to get rid of them for sure is to require a CAPTCHA before all posts. That has its own issues though.
Perhaps the only way to get rid of them for sure is to require a CAPTCHA before all posts. That has its own issues though.
It is a vulnerability, but exploiting that vulnerability is not generally considered by security experts to be “hacking” in the usual meaning of that term in academic settings. Using an open or exposed API, even one with a sign that says “don’t abuse me”, is generally not considered hacking.
They did not do it by manipulating code. This wasn’t the result of a code vulnerability. If you leave the door wide open with all your stuff out for the entire neighbourhood to see, you can’t claim you were “broken into”. Similarly, if you don’t secure your endpoints, you can’t claim you were “hacked”.
With due respect, you are wrong.
hack
…
- (transitive, slang, computing) To hack into; to gain unauthorized access to (a computer system, e.g., a website, or network) by manipulating code
Hacking means gaining unauthorized access to a computer system by manipulating or exploiting its code.
I love the Internet Archive but they are pretty clearly legally in the wrong here.
Not morally, mind. I support open access to knowledge. But they very clearly broke copyright law here.