The Illustrated Primer

Author: Yaacov Apelbaum

Only the Racially Pure Need Apply

January 11, 2010 5 Comments

On February 20, 1939, over 20,000 American supporters of the Nazi party packed Madison Square Garden in New York City. They anxiously awaited the appearance of Fritz Julius Kuhn, the newly anointed American Führer of the German-American Bund. The event took place two days before George Washington’s birthday and a 30-foot-high portrait of the first president (who was described by Fritz as the first Fascist) hung behind the podium along with Nazi flags and swastikas.

Read More »

Let There Be Light

December 15, 2009 2 Comments

When I first watched the clip, I really thought that it was another Borat promotional, but after a few seconds, I realized that it was actually the real thing. Many men were in suits, moms, dads and grandparents were there with their young kids in tow, clearly, not a lynch mob wielding pitch forks. At least not judging from the dress code.

Read More »

Windows Live Credit Card Phishing

December 10, 2009 15 Comments

In many cases, the objective of phishing is to just recover your webmail credentials since the resale value of a legitimate web mail account on the black market can be as high as $2-$3—twice the amount one can get for a stolen credit card number.

Read More »

Mortgage Refinancing Shysters I

June 3, 2009 39 Comments

In what is further proof of the principal of horror vacui, it seems that the legitimate banking mortgage industry has now given way to a new breed of entrepreneurial ventures. These con-corporations have smelled the blood in the water and are aggressively following Mr. Bigweld’s motto: “See a need, Fill a need”.

Read More »

Social Networks vs. the Enterprise

May 27, 2009 1 Comment

But alas, every garden has its resident snake, and such is the A grade serpent found in social network’s Garden of Eden. What many of us don’t realize is that the same characteristics that make the social networks so attractive are also their greatest limitation.

Read More »

The Death March

April 20, 2009 3 Comments

To those unfamiliar with the term, a death march is not a walk through Ezekiel’s valley of dry bones. Rather, it is a reference to a development project where requirements exceed the realistic deliverables by at least 50 percent.

Read More »

An Afternoon with a Fraudster

March 20, 2009 10 Comments

It was only after I played back the recording and listened to it several times that I realized how sophisticated and polished the scam was. The planners had thought of everything and had prepared for even the minutest of details.

Read More »

It’s All About Trust

November 19, 2008 5 Comments

The concept of clearance-based security (that is, non-expiring clearance) is reminiscent of cheese, especially the cheap Swiss variety, the one with too many holes.

Read More »