Thread by @mattblaze

Important, and long overdue, article about missing stair John Draper ("Captain Crunch") and hacker conferences.

I have a personal perspective here, which I'll share later.

buzzfeed.com/kevincollier/h…

For the last ~40 or so years, every time I see Draper's name lauded in print or on the net it brings back some disturbing memories. Fortunately, my story is not as bad as it could have been, but I regret not telling it more publicly sooner. 1/

I met Mr. Draper when I was a young phone enthusiast and high school student in the mid-late 1970's in NYC. I was in the 8th or 9th grade. 2/

He was at first generous in sharing his knowledge of phones and so on, which was what I was interested in. But he eventually became aggressive in inviting me to share what he said were "exercises". This put me off and creeped me out sufficiently that I dropped contact with him.3/

Unfortunately, that escalated into what became a rather disturbing and occasionally frightening series of stalking episodes. There was an obvious (and amateurish) tap on my family's phone line placed in the basement of our apt building. 4/

But the scary part was when he showed up (without my consent or knowledge) at my school and claimed to be a relative to take me out of school; the school had the good sense to call my parents. It brought home a sense of being under siege. I was 14 or 15. 5/

While I've tried over the years to quietly warn young hackers in his orbit to be careful, I regret that I've not been more public in doing so. 6/

The term "missing stair", which I first heard a few years ago, resonates with me quite strongly because of this experience. It's too easy for predators in our community to find newcomers to prey on. 7/

Anyway, I'm grateful to @kevincollier for writing is piece, and to the people who came forward to tell their (far worse) stories in it. We need to take better care of each other. 8/8

Thanks, by the way, everyone reaching out. I appreciate it, but I'm fine. This was ~40 years ago, and through a combination of luck, the people around me, and my instincts, I avoided being physically assaulted.

This experience didn't define me, but I hope it helps others.