Twenty years ago, some people complained that the Cult of the Dead Cow was seeking too much media attention. I have dealt with this complaint in the body of the book, and I think it clearly gives the group short shrift. On a personal level, I can tell you that not all in cDc were clamoring for the in-depth attention I have given it here.
Some members were willing to help a lot, providing personal information even if it could hurt them, and I want to thank them most of all. Extra thanks to those who let me be the first to identify them as cDc members by their real names: Kemal Akman, Sam Anthony, Luke Benfey, Bill Brown, Carolin Campbell, Matt Kelly, Misha Kubecka, Glenn Kurtzrock, Paul Leonard, Dan MacMillan, Adam O’Donnell, Beto O’Rourke, Charlie Rhodes, Mike Seery, Dylan Shea, and Kevin Wheeler. It is also worth noting that some were reluctant to speak at all. For months, founder Kevin Wheeler would not return messages from Luke, his effective number two for decades, about helping with this project. Only after Luke threatened to send him a singing telegram did Kevin finally agree to discuss his potential participation. I am grateful that he and others came around.
More broadly, most of the people named in this book and many who are not devoted their time and candor, and I greatly appreciate the education. For kindly housing and looking after me during my research trips, I would like to thank Ralph and Shan Logan, Andrea Shallcross and Jonathan Burn, Rachel Layne and John Mulrooney, Barbara Bestor and Tom Stern, and assorted relatives. I am also indebted to a number of talented and hardworking authors who brought clarity to various aspects of historic and current issues in security touched on here, including John Markoff, Phil Lapsley, Fred Kaplan, Ronald Deibert, Shane Harris, Andy Greenberg, Bruce Sterling, Steven Levy, and Gabriella Coleman. For those interested in learning more about the bulletin board era, I strongly recommend Jason Scott Sadofsky’s multipart documentary and his text file collection, both publicly available. I would especially like to thank my keen-eyed editor, Colleen Lawrie, agent David Patterson, and media advisor Elinor Mills.
I have been fortunate to work since 2012 at Reuters, which has some of the finest journalists in the world. The company provided me the opportunity to pursue challenging and at times risky stories that paved the way for this book. Beyond that, Reuters graciously gave me two leaves: in 2014 for my medical recovery and again in 2017–2018 to report and write the bulk of this book. Good journalism matters greatly, and I am heartened that more people are supporting it.