DEF CON's Hacker-In-Chief Faces Fortune In Medical Bills
- Reference: 0175853033
- News link: https://science.slashdot.org/story/25/01/08/2037204/def-cons-hacker-in-chief-faces-fortune-in-medical-bills
- Source link:
> Marc Rogers, DEF CON's head of security, [1]faces tens of thousands of dollars in medical bills following an accident that left him with a broken neck and temporary quadriplegia. The prominent industry figure, whose work has spanned roles at tech companies such as Vodafone and Okta, including ensuring the story lines on Mr Robot and The Real Hustle were factually sound, is recovering in hospital. [...] Rogers said it will be around four to six weeks before he returns to basic independence and is able to travel, but a full recovery will take up to six months. He begins a course of physical therapy today, but his insurance will only cover the first of three required weeks, prompting friends to [2]set up a fundraiser to cover the difference.
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> Rogers has an impressive cyber CV. Beginning life in cybersecurity back in the '80s when he went by the handle Cjunky, he has gone on to assume various high profile roles in the industry. In addition to the decade leading Vodafone UK's cybersecurity and being the VP of cybersecurity strategy at Okta, as already mentioned, Rogers has also worked as head of security at Cloudflare and founded Vectra, among other experiences. Now he heads up security at DEF CON, is a member of the Ransomware Taskforce, and is the co-founder and CTO at AI observability startup nbhd.ai.
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> If you hadn't heard of him from any of these roles, or from his work in the entertainment biz, he's also known for his famous research into Apple's Touch ID sensor, which he was able to compromise on both the iPhone 5S and 6 during his time as principal researcher at Lookout. Other consumer-grade kit to get the Rogers treatment include the short-lived Google Glass devices, also while he was at Lookout, and the Tesla Model S back in 2015.
"It's a sad fact that in the US GoFundMe has become the de facto standard for covering insurance shortfalls," Rogers said. "I will be forever grateful to my friends who stood it up for me and those who donated to it so that I can resume making bad guys cry as soon as feasibly possible."
The cybersecurity community has rallied together to support [3]Rogers' fundraiser , which has accrued over $83,000 in donations. The goal is $100,000.
[1] https://www.theregister.com/2025/01/07/def_con_security_chief_injured/
[2] https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-marc-rogers-road-to-recovery
[3] https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-marc-rogers-road-to-recovery
Not a medical necessity (Score:1)
Quadriplegic men can't sneak up on CEOs or fire guns.
What a Great System! (Score:5, Insightful)
We get to pay thousands of dollars in premiums every year for the privilege of having our claims denied and then become digital beggars to cover what the insurance company should have covered in the first place! It truly is the best system money can buy.
Re: (Score:2)
> We get to pay thousands of dollars in premiums every year for the privilege of having our claims denied and then become digital beggars to cover what the insurance company should have covered in the first place! It truly is the best system money can buy.
And the best part is, any argument against it is instantly met with long rants about the importance of profit for insurers and the medical industry. We have decided as a society that profit absolutely *IS* more important than health and people. This is America. Profit comes first.
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> any argument against it is instantly met with long rants about the importance of profit for insurers and the medical industry.
Sadly, as public corporations, legally their primary duty/responsibility is to benefit their shareholders (and make profits). However, the ACA [1]Medical Loss Ratio [cms.gov] "requires insurance companies to spend at least 80% or 85% of premium dollars on medical care" and if they don't, issuers are "required to provide a rebate to its customers". Sadly, this also means companies have no incentive to spend *more* than that on medical care. Noting that I have actually received several of these rebates over the past fe
[1] https://www.cms.gov/marketplace/private-health-insurance/medical-loss-ratio
Crowdsourcing health insurance (Score:4, Insightful)
Why do Americans need to crowdsource our own healthcare in the United States? These sorts of stories keep popping up. Why can't we have normal healthcare like the rest of the civilized world?
Re:Crowdsourcing health insurance (Score:5, Informative)
Because Republicans
Re: (Score:1)
> Because Republicans
Were those in power during the last 4 years?
Re:Crowdsourcing health insurance (Score:4, Insightful)
Through the use of the Senate filibuster, yes. (You need 60% of all the senators to end debate on a bill). It's called rule by the minority party, and it cuts both ways.
Re: (Score:2)
Why does this matter? The health care industry fixes will require decades to fix. Remember, the president and administration do not have power to unilaterally change an entire industry, we elect presidents and not kings. We did try some basic fixes but single payer options were roundly rejected, even the sensible Romney/Obamacare were roundly criticized and the upcoming president previously promised to dismantle the whole thing (leaving millions without insurance), and possibly he'll try again.
An insuran
Re: (Score:2)
Any talk of reform?
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Yes. But also lots of promises to try and rollback previous reforms.
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Because employers, insurance companies, and the government would rather keep the status quo. They'll fight tooth and nail to keep it as it is.
Of course it also doesn't help that most Americans don't know it can be better. And they are deathly afraid of anything which is provided by the government, because they're used to the government treating them with contempt.
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A lot of truth behind this. Everyone is afraid of change
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But combine with that the active propaganda being spread that all alternative methods are worse. Ie, our broken system is tauted as being better than all other health care system in the entire world. Because it's heretical blasphemy to claim we're not the best nation that was, is, or ever will exist.
Re: (Score:2)
Go Fund Me is insurance. It's a method for spreading risk among a larger group. It has a few of unique features: claims are edjudicated in a distributed manner, premiums are optional, and awards are based on how likeable and/or famous the claimant is.
Seems very American, really.
The USA is the first world leader in (Score:4, Insightful)
...indebting people for medical costs.
Avoiding medical debt is like trying to cross a room with rat traps covering every square inch of the floor while barefoot. (Sometimes even when you have insurance).
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You forgot those few p0arts parts of the floor not covered in rat traps have lego pieces.
hold up, you mean (Score:4, Insightful)
you mean a guy with bonafides like those since the 80's can't afford medical treatment? Oh wait, that's right, the health insurance business is bigger than every other business in the world. Bigger than oil, coal, semiconductors, cars, tourism and the weapons business. A business that big can't benefit anyone but the top shareholders and executives and the politicians who are in their pockets.
Health insurance only for celebrities? (Score:1)
> "It's a sad fact that in the US GoFundMe has become the de facto standard for covering insurance shortfalls,"
Certainly, but those running "GoFundME" campaigns to cover insurance shortfalls help to cement the status quo. Just like those paying tips in restaurants are basically providing employers an excuse for not offering livable wages.
Also, there are certainly many affected by insurance shortfalls, who are not even mildly famous for anything, and I wonder why one would donate to a campaign for a celebrity while ignoring the misery of all the other ones affected. Especially since (a) the accident was not somehow
We're #1 (Score:5, Informative)
And my American friends wonder why I am not interested in living in the USA. In what other civilized first world country would this be a news story?
Re: (Score:3)
> why should I care?
Because he did or didn't get the covid vaccine... whichever one pisses you off more...
Re:Remind me again (Score:4, Insightful)
If he lived in a modern country, he wouldn't have to worry about those medical bills. Nothing is too much for the billionaire class while nothing is too little for the proles.