From: fc@all.net (Fred Cohen)
Date: Mon, 1 Jan 1996 02:46:01 +0800
To: an5877@anon.penet.fi
Subject: Re: Fred Cohen, PhD
In-Reply-To: <9512311704.AA03856@anon.penet.fi>
Message-ID: <9512311818.AA16259@all.net>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text


> Regarding Fred Cohen, PhD:
> 
> Cohen's haughty and bombastic style do nothing good for his reputation.  I
> assume he advertises his PhD to highlight his early accomplishments; he has
> done little since.

Apparently you have a reading disability.  I haven't used Ph.D. next to my
name on this forum for some time.

> Let's also consider the granting institution, a second-rank school.

When you insult me, that's one thing, but insulting my school is
something quite different.  The University of Southern California is one
of the finest educational institutions in the world, and is widely
recognized as such.  The engineering school at USC (from which I earned
my Ph.D.) is commonly ranked in the top 10 in the US, and in the year
that I graduated, my department was ranked in the top 5 in the US.

USC, in addition to having a fine athletic tradition, also has many
unique benefits that sets it apart from many other excellent schools. 
But I wouldn't want to advertise in this forum - you'll have to contact
them directly for more extensive information.

> Cohen's thesis broke new ground, but how many people have read it, or any of
> his writings, or know anything about his ideas beyond a single word?  How far
> did he carry this work?  Where are the conference and journal papers?  Cohen's
> reputation faded into obscurity long ago.  Now he is building a new reputation
> as a pig-headed loudmouth, threatening his "defamers."  Shades of Sternlight.

Some people are ignorant because they haven't had a chance to learn, but
other people are ignorant because they choose to be.  In your case, it is
apparently the latter.  But I will answer your questions nonetheless:

How many people have read it, or any of his writings, or know anything
about his ideas beyond a single word?

	The thesis has only sold a few hundred copies, however, over
	20,000 people have read my books on the subject.  My two
	articles in "The Sciences" reached about 25,000 people each.
	But I don't think thatr the value of peoples' work is a
	function of how many people know about them.

How far did he carry this work?

	I have published over 30 refereed journal articles on the subject,
	about 50 conference papers, about 100 invited talks, and today,
	over 1/2 of all computers in the world run virus defense software
	using techniques I first published.  That's more refereed papers
	than anyone else in the world on that particular subject.

Where are the conference and journal papers?

	They are listed on the Web site listed below.  They include
	IEEE, ACM, and IFIP papers, invited papers at IEEE, ACM,
	DPMA, IFIP, and NIST conferences (as well as many others).

So, now that we have a very brief history of my work, let us all know
where you went to school, how many journal and conference papers you
have published, how many books you have written.

We already know that you won't tell people your name because you are
afraid to have it associated with you personally, but maybe you can help
us all understand how expert you are and what you have contributed to
the world so we can appreciate your point of view.

-> See: Info-Sec Heaven at URL http://all.net/
Management Analytics - 216-686-0090 - PO Box 1480, Hudson, OH 44236